Category Archives: Christianity

What does being unequally yoked mean?

04 Wednesday Oct 2017

Posted by in Christianity, Faith, Love

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Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. 2 Corinthians 6:14-16

The subject of being ‘unequally yoked’ for a Christian continues to be a bone of contention. It really shouldn’t; but often we want the Bible to fit in with our lives and seem only able to accept Christ on our terms. The Bible however will not change, we cannot add or take anything away from it, and if we don’t agree with it there is precious little we can do. So, as usual I like to keep things simple.

Firstly, God always gives us a choice. There are some requirements for holy living where God says we categorically must not do something and must live a certain way, or we will not enter the kingdom of heaven. And there are other requirements where God says, we should not do something because if we do it we will have problems which will make it difficult for us to maintain a righteous life in Him. As a result we will struggle unnecessarily and could fall away from Him. The subject of being unequally yoked falls in the latter category.

To be ‘yoked’ is to be joined together in a close relationship, any relationship; not just marriage. As Christians we usually think of this term in regards to a Christian marrying a non-Christian, but it is far more than that. The Apostle Paul addresses the Corinthians, who at the time were not living a righteous life, they were making all sorts of mistakes. They had close relationships with idol worshippers and false prophets, the lines were blurred with believers and unbelievers fellowshipping together. As a result of this, they did not recognise Paul as the true follower of Christ and was rejecting him.

The world today is a difficult, complicated, melting pot of evil, hate and pain; masking itself with the sole intent to deceive and destroy the innocent. God has opened the eyes of His believers so they will see it for what it is and live accordingly, avoiding the unholiness of the world. Living a righteous and holy life in this world, is difficult enough even when you are equally ‘yoked,’ believing in the same doctrine of Christ and living according to the same principles.

Paul challenges this situation, be it friendships or relationships; of which marriage is the closest. For when we are married to someone who is an unbeliever; we know Christ; while they do not. We worship while they do not. They still enjoy the worldly living while we do not or should not. Our lifestyle and choices will be different which will inevitably cause problems and divisions in the relationship.

Paul is not saying here that this is a ‘deal breaker’ or that you will lose your Salvation, although as a Christian, worldly influences could pull you away from Christ which could result in you losing your salvation if not recognised and acted upon. He is saying that the two are not equally matched. To be yoked with others who preach completely different doctrines that goes against the Bible, to be yoked with idol worshippers; those who live a riotous life which you are trying to live a righteous life is counter productive to the Christian walk.

God gives us the freedom to make our own choices, but tells us very clearly in the Bible that certain choices will make our lives difficult.

Whilst there are many marriages and close relationships joining believers to non-believers; how many can say they can sit down and pray together, discuss God together, read and understand the Bible together or both look forward to the day when they meet our Saviour in heaven? For such a relationship to work, there has to be a lot of compromise so one will not offend the other, boundaries which cannot be crossed, a dividing line to allow each to ‘do their thing’ whilst coming together to fellowship. It is difficult at best!

When believers are yoked with unbelievers; we will not be able to share or exchange intimate thoughts and feelings, especially on a mental or spiritual level; but the Lord still allows us to chose the people in our lives.

It should also be noted here that Christians can be unequally yoked to other Christians. How is this possible you ask? Well, Paul actually speaks of believers and unbelievers, which we often refer to as Christians and non-Christians. With over 2 billion Christians in the world today, it is safe to say that there are varying degrees of belief in the true Gospel of Christ. There are some Christians who do not believe in Jesus Christ and His teachings. Many have taken what pleases them and mixed it with a little of this and a little of that and created their own hybrid ‘religion’ still referring to it as Christianity. To be yoked to someone claiming to be a Christian but not truly believing in Jesus Christ and His teachings… the fullness of the Word of God; is to be unequally yoked.

God is merciful and loves us so much that as long as there is a Christian in the household that household will be blessed. On the topic of marriage the Lord is not saying that if your partner is a non-believer you should be parted from them; on the contrary. God loves marriage, it was ordained by Him. So an unbelieving husband or wife is sanctified through the husband or wife who believes in Christ and is living a righteous life. That union is blessed, it is not any less of a marriage than the marriage of two believers. But we need to know that there will be struggles because fundamentally both parties still have different beliefs.

Babes in Christ

11 Monday Sep 2017

Posted by in Christianity, Faith, Giving, Jesus, Love, Religion

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Christians fix up

Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. John 3:3

The fragile state of a new born babe cannot be denied. They are completely reliant on the parents or guardians. They don’t understand our language; we need some time to understand their signs; they can’t care for themselves; they need to learn all about their new world that they have been born into. They need to be nurtured! Some are more challenging than others, so we don’t abandon those, on the contrary, we put more effort into caring for them. And all this takes time as they grow and develop into strong adults!

You are probably thinking at this stage that we all know this, mankind has been around for a while now so what point am I making here?! Well, the point is that this is the same for a ‘new born babe’ in Christ. The new Christian, the new Convert, the newly Saved… they are babes in Christ! and in much the way as a new born babe, they need care, guidance, nurturing as they make their way through their spiritual life to becoming spiritual adults. They too have to learn a new language, train their mind to think in a different way; their bodies to react in a different way and their tongues to speak in a different way… all new to them. As they grow and develop spiritually they will become stronger and not so dependent on others, though we must always love and support each other throughout out lives.

Having said all this why then do we as Christians get it wrong so often? New converts who are able to adjust well and quickly seem to be embraced while the ones who are finding it more challenging and are struggling in many ways; often finding it difficult to shake of the residue of the world; are ignored, avoided, side-stepped. Sometimes they are blatantly dismissed or subtly ignored! Not only have I seen this happen, but many have shared their experiences with me over the years; and it doesn’t seem to be getting any better.

First and foremost, many seem to lack understanding and knowledge; then progress on to a lack of patience and empathy when it comes to helping others. If someone is deemed to be too challenging; few are prepared to go the extra mile with them. Yet, Christ went further than the extra mile with us and continues to do so today! If we are spiritual adults who follow Christ and love each other as Christ has loved us; we should never be overcome with the task of nurturing the new babes to the point where we give up with them ultimately leading to them giving up on themselves.

Our Christian walk is “not about us! It is about others.” It’s always been about loving and helping others.

We need to help them to nurture their relationship with God, through studying the Word of God (the Bible) which will teach them how to communicate effectively with God through prayer; to enable them to grow into strong spiritual adults:

1 Peter 2:2
As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:

All too often and more so in these latter days Christianity seems to be so exclusive, with a real ‘them’ and ‘us’ attitude. If we don’t ‘fix up’ and sort ourselves out we do the name of Christ an injustice.

Reach out today and help someone who is struggling in their Faith!

Recommended Reading:
My Alabaster Box: A Simple Guide Through The Christian Journey

I am a Christian… but!

22 Tuesday Aug 2017

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Jesus Christ is Lord_2

Many people in the world claim to be Christians; and the 2001 census recorded 41 million Christians living in Great Britain; making up almost three quarters of the population. (Information taken from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-32722155). At a glance this is impressive and encouraging for the Faith in this country. But start scratching the surface and a very different story emerges.

It seems that many who claim to be Christians are really not sure what Christianity is or what it really means to be a Christian. Is it possible to be a Christian but not believe in Jesus Christ? No absolutely not; but apparently many say they are Christians but not only do they not believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour and don’t know Him; but they don’t believe in the teachings of the Bible. They are happy with some bits and discard the rest.

Christianity Is:
In light of these revelations, let’s take a few moments to provide a simple definition of the meaning of Christianity. To be a Christian is to be Christ like, to believe that Jesus Christ is Lord and Saviour, is the Son of the one true living God, Jehovah. It is a belief that Jesus came to die for the sins of the world and He will one day return to reward His followers and judge the rest of the world. Christianity is to live a righteous life according to the teachings of the Holy Bible and to have a real relationship with God.

Christianity is Not:
A fad, popular culture, or a new lifestyle choice. It is not just a spiritual experience that you can’t quite understand so you have decided to give it a label. It is not a belief in all the religions of the world; you cannot say you are a Christian, but you also believe in other gods and religions; as Christianity is a complete and total belief in God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Professing to be a Christian on your own terms is damaging to the Faith and adds to the confusion causing a decline in the Faith with many turning to other religions or choosing to believe in nothing at all.

The term ‘Christians’ was first used in Antioch as told to us in the following scriptures:

Acts 11:25-26
Then departed Barnabas to Tarsus, for to seek Saul: And when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch.

So we know this was the start of Christianity and the first church and this has continued through the ages to today.  Christianity has taken many turns and directions, many ups and downs.  Hundreds of denominations, inconsistent teachings and practices have caused much confusion in the Faith and decades later the world is more confused now than ever.  Many have misunderstood the prophecies and revelations of the Bible, attempting to interpret parts by taking them out of context, embracing some teachings while rejecting others.  They have mixed it with some man-made laws, traditions practices and cultures; not to mention the cults and newly emerging religious groups.  Who can be blamed for being confused?  A good rule of thumb here is to get to know the Bible for yourself, have a real relationship with the Holy Spirit so He can guide you and you will know in your spirit when a teaching is wrong and does not line up with the Word of God. (My Alabaster Box: A Simple Guide Through the Christian Journey).

You cannot say you are a Christian… but! There are no grey areas in God. We are either Christians or not. We are either like Christ or not! Believing that there is a god or something greater out there or you are spiritual does not make you a Christian.

If we say we are Christians, there are no buts; we need to know who we worship and who we are in Christ!

Be Blessed!

The Ultimate in Service to God

08 Tuesday Aug 2017

Posted by in Christianity, Faith, Jesus, Love, Spiritual Training

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“Not my will Lord; Let your will be done in my life.”

We often think we know what’s best for ourselves and what we should do to please God. Usually without a thought as to what God’s perfect will is for our lives, or what is actually pleasing to Him. In spending some time with the Holy Spirit to understand this, I was lead to John 13, when Jesus washed the feet of His Disciples after He finished the Last Supper.

It is easy to think that the ultimate service we can perform for God is to be great in our calling… to be a great Prophet, a great Preacher or worker of Miracles; but no, this is not the case. Jesus is the Son of God, a Prophet, a teacher and preacher of the Gospel, a worker of miracles; and so much more. Yet, in John 13, after He had the Last Supper He washed the feet of His disciples. So what is  Jesus saying to us here?

John 13:3-5
Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he was come from God, and went to God; He rose from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself. After that he poured water into a basin, and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded…

Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands and that He had come from God and was going to God, rose from supper with twelve men who had been journeying with Him throughout His ministry, and … WASHED THEIR FEET!

It was the custom at that time for slaves to be assigned the task of washing the feet of the masters’ guests. That task was NEVER done by anyone of high status in society…EVER…So why did Jesus do this? He removed His outer garments took a towel and girded Himself in preparation for the task just as the slaves would have done at that time.

But this was not just a physical or practical exercise. In this one act there are many spiritually symbolic meanings. In verse 10; Christ says; ‘he who is bathed needs only to wash His feet, but is completely clean.’ When we come to Christ we are washed in His blood so we are COMPLETELY clean, we have been justified by our Faith in Him. Our FEET however continues to get dirty and unclean as they represent our WALK in Christ. We are at the start of our journey so we have a long way to go! They will get dirty on this daily journey as we make mistakes. Sometimes we will get ourselves all messed up, we will sin whether consciously or unconsciously; physically or in our minds!! So therefore, our feet need washing again and again. We do this through confessing our sins to God and to each other… (JAMES 5:16 confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed.)

WE MUST ACKNOWLEDGE WHERE WE ARE GOING WRONG! 

Only Jesus can cleanse us from the sins committed on our walk, only He can wash away sins… so Peter or any of the disciples could NOT wash the feet of Jesus. Jesus also knew that shortly one would betray Him; one would deny Him and the others would run away from Him… so He was already cleansing them and forgiving them for what they were about to do. This was the fullness of God’s Love and Mercy, that all the Disciples had to do was to confess their sins to Him acknowledge what they had because He had already cleansed them and forgiven them… He washed Judas’ feet’ so Judas was already cleansed and forgiven for his part but we know that he never went back to the Lord with it… he later took his life when he realised what he had done!!

We follow Christ’s example by washing each other’s feet not to cleanse anyone from their sins but to show LOVE, COMPASSION AND FORGIVENESS TO EACH OTHER and to commit to serving each other…

It is a practical act with a deep spiritual meaning, just like the Holy Communion. When we eat the bread which represents Christ’s body and drink the wine which represents Christ’s blood we remember His crucifixion; a practical act with a very deep spiritual meaning.

The washing of each others’ feet represents the ultimate in service to God and His people. Jesus did not ask us to wash our own feet as this would be self-serving, we MUST serve each other. When we make our lives about others and NOT about ourselves… only then can God work with us! The ultimate service to God is to love and serve Him obediently as Christ did and to love and serve each other as Christ did. It’s not about ‘us,’ it’s about Him. God needs to be able to call on us at anytime to do whatever He asks us to do.

When God calls on you, do you hear Him, or do you continue doing what pleases you?

Fishers of Men

04 Friday Aug 2017

Posted by in Christianity, Faith, Inspiration, Spiritual Training, The Gospel

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Fishers of men

I am proud to say that I have a new profession… I am a Fisher; forget the gender specifics! I fish for the humankind.

When we are called into the kingdom of God there is a lot of attention and emphasis on us, the new convert. And while we continue to be grounded in our Faith by staying closely connected to God and growing spiritually, we have been called into a greater purpose; a new profession. No, don’t give up your day job just yet, unless God has called you into full time ministry. The training for this role is on the job training.

Matthew 4:
And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.
And He said unto them, Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.
And they straightway left their nets, and followed him.

Becoming a Fisher for God is simple. Qualifications: accept Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, confess and repent of your sins, turn away from your old life and live a righteous life in Christ. Too simple? Not at all! There are no catches, hidden agendas for fine print. Don’t think you are not good enough or that you don’t deserve the ultimate promotion? Yes you are and yes you do.

So what does it mean to be a ‘Fisher of Men?’ Our greatest example was and always will be Jesus Christ. At no point did He live a pomp, privileged life unconcerned with the world or the fate of others. He was focused at all times on His purpose… to educate the world about Him and the Kingdom of Heaven. He therefore travelled far and wide preaching and teaching the Gospel; daily. He remained in constant contact with God the Father and never diverted to follow His own path. The four Gospels; Matthew, Mark, Luke and John tell us of Jesus Christ, His life and works.

Jesus did not sit in the temples and synagogues daily or on a particular chosen day, Sunday or Saturday suited and booted and waiting! Waiting for the sick and needy to find Him. No, He went out of the four walls of the synagogues or His house and He travelled on the transported afforded to Him at that time… oh and He walked; a lot. As Christians we cannot get so comfortable and complacent in the four walls of our church. Our lives cannot revolve solely around our Sunday worship or whichever day of the week is designated for worship. Remember worship should be every day.

A Fisherman of the natural kind, cannot wait at home for the fish to jump out of the sea and travel to find them. They have to commit to their profession, invest in the necessary equipment, tools, resources and time. They need expert knowledge of the weather and the best locations to fish; and most importantly of all they have to get up out of the four walls of their homes and go fishing. I imagine in this age of technology they would need to staying abreast of innovative technology, with continued training and reskilling throughout their lives to be an effective fisherman.

So how does the Christian measure up to this new profession. Well first of all; secular societies are often insulted at the mention of Jesus’ name, making it difficult to spread the Word of God. There seems to be a lot of respect for other religions and faiths, but little for the Christian Faith. But that’s ok, the fisherman too has to ride the storms and cannot give up because the weather is threatening and perilous. Jesus continued with His ministry against oppositions such as the might of the Roman Empire, the King, the Jewish Leaders. Know that it is not nor ever will be easy! Don’t let fear prevent you from spreading the message of Christ far and wide. Don’t wait for someone to find you, to discover you are a Christian in the hope that they will find Christ through their own efforts! Help them by telling them about Christ and the kingdom of heaven.

Leave the four walls of your church and your home and tell people about your Faith. Let yourself be guided by God the Holy Spirit and use wisdom and discernment; but do tell them. Work situations can be easier than you think. During many discussions on a Monday morning when work colleagues would ask each other how their weekend went and what they did! Everyone openly shared their exciting weekend adventures, ‘I went to a party and got drunk off my face and don’t remember how I got home,’ or ‘I went away for the weekend and stayed in a beautiful hotel,’ or ‘I caught up with household chores and did some gardening.’ Naturally, I did something as well so I wasn’t going to stay silent. I shared my wonderful weekend too, don’t stay silent because you think someone might not want to hear it. “I had an amazing time at church, I was moderating, or ushering… there was a baptism.” I too have a voice and the many weekend escapades of the world do not interest me; but I had to listen to them every week; so I shared my experiences and my joys just like anyone else.

You have a voice so use it! Don’t stay silent and hope for the best, Jesus didn’t! Use your spiritual gifts, cast your net wide, spread the Gospel of Christ and become real Fishers of Men!

Don’t neglect your bodies

20 Tuesday Jun 2017

Posted by in Christianity, Faith, Inspiration

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Look after your bodies2

Man, a tri-partite being exists in three parts that make up a whole; the spirit, soul and body. We have confirmation of this in many scriptures of the Bible.

1 Thessalonians 5:23
And I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

To function effectively in this life, all three parts must work as one in purpose and will. The moment one part of our being is out of balance, things start going wrong in our lives. Because many people are dismissive of the spirit or the soul, they are not always able to identify where the problem lies, so they are not able to fix it.

It is not now, nor has it ever been God’s will for us to be sick and suffer illnesses; but with the entry of sin into the world things started going wrong in our lives. The ability to connect with God in our spirit came under attack, mental and psychological problems presented themselves and physical decay leading to death became our new reality. Therefore, I think it only fair to write about some of the physical struggles we are faced with in life as our bodies have to deal with all sorts of disorders, conditions, natural cycles that cause us pain and discomfort. We know that it will deteriorate over time and eventually die, and a body deteriorating over time will sometimes be in pain and generally not respond to life as well as it did when it was young and healthy. Eyesight dims, hearing impaired, joint movements slow or motionless, the aging process and its’ own set of unique attributes.

When we come to the Lord, we must begin to live in the Spirit and the emphasis is no longer on the physical man, but is now on the spirit man. However, the Lord does not expect for a moment that we should lose interest in looking after our physical body or allow it to fall into a state of disrepair. On the contrary, without this body we will not be alive, without it there would be no place for the Father, Son and Holy Spirit to come in and dwell within us. We are need to look after our bodies. Now approaching the age of 53, I am dealing with things that I was definitely not prepared for.

I don’t remember any lessons or guidance on your body feeling like it is overheating to the point of combustion, followed by uncontrollable sweating, and the need to desperately seek for something; anything, to cool yourself down! Call me naïve, but through the years I have often seen women cooling themselves down with fans, sheets of paper, electric fans directed in their faces at work; and never thought to question it. All I knew was that I was nearly always cold and need fairly hot temperatures to truly enjoy the weather. I have often thought ‘it’s not that hot, why are they fanning sporadically?’ Obviously sometimes it’s the heat or a lack of air circulating in the room, but in these last 18 months I seem to have joined in this strange behaviour. Now a little older and wiser, I have come to realise that these ‘heat attacks’ as I call it, is none other than the onset of the menopause, a very natural cycle in our lives yet so full of varying degrees of discomfort pain!

Obviously with all the things happening in our lives, we take them first to the Lord, pray about them ask for healing, endurance and strength to cope with whatever is being thrown at us. But we must also acknowledge that we will not be healed of all ailments in this life because the promise of a perfect life without sickness and death is not here and now, it is the spiritual and everlasting life in Christ. We still need to be wise in looking after this body until it is time to go. We know in Genesis 1 that God gave us all the green herbs and fruits bearing seeds to feed our bodies and keep us healthy. And although we have moved so far from the life God had planned for us, we should continue where possible to use these natural remedies that grow on God’s green earth to help to keep our bodies going.

There are many things as Christians we seem reluctant to discuss or deal with, but for me I think it is good to talk and share our experiences to help each other. Sometimes we have family, friends, acquaintances, church brethren or strangers who are suffering in silence and dare not bring up certain life subjects for fear of reprisal; so it is very important that we talk about these very real issues to help someone who may be struggling with them.

Having always maintained a healthy lifestyle, and healthy diet where possible, I find that as we are getting older and our bodies are not functioning as well as they used to, it is wise to make healthy eating a priority and use healthy products on our skin. More recently I have re-acquainted myself with some healthy remedies my grandmother used to give me. One of them being root ginger, she would pop a small chunk into my mouth as a child to combat travel sickness… and it worked. I have recently become more involved in making my own juices using healthy organic products and avoiding those with unnatural sweeteners, artificial colours and preservatives. It is very exciting and therapeutic, and so much healthier for us as we get older. I have also been given a recipe of: apple cider vinegar, garlic and unpasteurised honey mixed together and taken daily in the morning to help with the effects of the menopause. I have only been using it for a few days so no updates on its’ effectiveness as yet!

However I am more than happy to trial healthy remedies with no side effects than the artificial alternatives with side effects. Don’t be afraid to use the natural remedies that come from the earth and balance it with the medical alternatives that God has blessed us with also. And please, introduce some exercise into your daily lives. Keep that heart healthy. Let us do the little things to help ourselves and leave God to do the big things. Remember Faith without Works is dead; so let’s not abuse our bodies and then expect God to work a miracle to fix it.

Don’t neglect your bodies, it is the house of the soul and the spirit; and the dwelling place of God, so it is important that we take care of it. We have a responsibility to look after ourselves as no one can do it for us. If you have any healthy remedies you are using, don’t be afraid to share them.

Be Blessed!

 

The most persecuted Faith on earth!

30 Tuesday May 2017

Posted by in Christianity, Faith, Jesus, Persecution, Religion

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Cross on the Rock2

CHRISTIANITY; to be Christ like. To spread the Gospel of Christ and tell the world of the Kingdom of God. Not to force our beliefs onto anyone but to let them freely chose. To share God’s love and to do it peacefully. That is who we are…

So how did we become the most persecuted Faith (religion) on the earth? Well we know that everything God does is challenged by the opposing force; the enemy, Satan! And we know that all strife in the world has a spiritual foundation. Every single one, without exception. Whether the world believes that or not is a different matter altogether!

Ephesians 6:12-13
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 

Regardless of what the physical world professes; it is driven by spiritual forces which we cannot see and often do not understand!

Persecution of Christians is not new and it will not stop! This is not to say it should be accepted, because it should not; but we know that it will not stop. The Faith itself came into being through persecution of our Lord and Saviour Jesus; our God who gave us life allowed His to be taken, to free us from ourselves.

Whilst not the most accurate timeline, let us take a look at just some of the major periods of persecution that Christians have endured since the inception of the Faith. Jesus was killed, though not against His will. He allowed it to happen to bring us back into a relationship with God. But although He chose to go through it; that death was brutal and evil. And through that single selfless act of Love, Christianity was birthed. Then the Apostles took up the mantel and travelled far and wide preaching and teaching in the name of Jesus. They too were beaten mercilessly again and again and later killed. The various deaths included, being crucified upside down, being tied to a cross to prolong death, being killed by a sword, beheaded and so it continued. John being the only Apostle to live to an old age, but he was stilled imprisoned on the Isle of Patmos.

Christians were being hunted and killed by Saul who later became Paul; one of the greatest Apostles to walk the earth, literally. He preached and taught the Gospel across continents, and he too was beaten to within an inch of his life on several occasions, then later imprisoned and continued to write the majority of the books of the New Testament. Later, Christians were murdered and fed to animals for entertainment in the Roman Amphitheatres. Christianity went through many dark times across the globe. Many were martyred, burnt and brutalised for worshipping the one true God, Jehovah. Killed for proclaiming that Jesus Christ is Lord and often forced to denounce their beliefs.

Today, in our civilised world, you could be forgiven for thinking that this situation has gotten better and this is no longer the case. But no; it has gotten worse. These few lines could not begin to accentuate the peril that many millions of Christians face today.

Open Doors has been serving persecuted Christians worldwide for the past 60 years and have profiled 50 countries; where Christians are being brutalised, and killed on a daily basis. Christianity is now identified as the most persecuted religious group in the world! That is indeed some title and not one that anyone would compete to have! Yet how often do we hear in the news bulletins about the atrocities that Christians all over the world are being faced with on a daily basis? This has been iterated by the German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who claimed that ‘Christianity is in peril, like no other religion.’ The extreme persecution of Christians is a global problem which some world leaders are now beginning to address. Basic human rights and the freedom to choose are not on the radar of the governments of the countries that persecute Christians.

We, more than any other body of believers are being targeted for our Faith!

These persecutions are not always undertaken by extremists; but by governments who have decided that the people should not have a choice to worship freely; but instead should worship who they are told to worship. But we know that as Jesus went through unjust persecution; so too must we. And He confirmed this to us in the following scripture.

John 15:20-21
Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.
But all these things will they do unto you for my name’s sake, because they know not him that sent me.

We know we must go through major persecutions; many have and many will. So; for our part; as a member of the Christian family, let us join in PRAYER for ALL our brothers and sisters, wherever they are in the world who cannot worship freely and are facing daily persecutions and even death.

Join me in prayer for the 50 countries where our brothers and sisters are suffering on a daily basis. We know prayer works, so let’s mobilise our Faith now. Follow me on Facebook for a list of which countries to pray for.

What we are praying for
We pray for strength, endurance, courage and for governments to pass laws to protect them and allow them to worship freely. And we pray that they will have peace in the midst of all the turmoil:

Philippians 4:7
And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Bless you!

Don’t force your beliefs on me!

25 Thursday May 2017

Posted by in Christianity, Faith, The Gospel

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Spreading the Gospel

No one can force you to accept Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, it cannot be done. You have to accept Salvation of your own free will.

If God wanted to force you to love Him He would have done it all by Himself and He didn’t, so no one else can do so.  If you are being forced, be weary make sure you accept the Lord because you believe in Him and not in the person trying to convince you, no matter how charismatic they seem to be. As a Christian you should preach and teach the gospel, be patient with the non-believer and do not get angry with them. Remember you were once in that same position, when you did not believe, thought you had all the answers and rejected anyone sharing the faith with you.

There is an urgency for us to preach the gospel today but this is not to be confused with pressuring someone into submission. The urgency lies in the fact that no one knows when it is their time to leave this world, today, tomorrow, next month, next year we have absolutely no idea. The following scripture tells us of a rich man who thought he had everything the world could offer and was pleased with his accomplishments. But:

Luke 12:16-21
And He spoke a parable unto them, saying, the ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.
But God said unto him, you fool, this night your soul shall be required of you: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? So is he that lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.

Having accumulated great earthly wealth, with no concern for the things of God, the rich man was completely satisfied with himself and was set for life or so he thought.  At no point did he think that he would not be alive long enough to enjoy it, and he wasn’t, so there is an urgency for Christians to preach the gospel and for those hearing it not to delay in answering the call. Jesus did not force anyone to follow Him, He fed thousands, He walked on the sea, He preached the kingdom of heaven to them, He healed the sick, raised people from the dead, not in secret but in very public places surrounded by the same people who rejected Him.

When Jesus explained to them that He was the Bread from Heaven sent down by the Father to give us life and that this was a spiritual illustration of who He is, they thought it was too difficult to understand and complained. The following scripture tells us that many of Jesus’ disciples walked away from Him:

John 6:60
Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it?

In that very moment in front of Jesus Himself, many disciples walked away from Him and never returned. They didn’t want to take up the challenge or try to understand something that was out of their comfort zone, remind you of anyone?

John 6:66-67
From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.  Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will you also go away?

Jesus never forced anyone to follow Him, you cannot force someone to want to be with you. This would be a good time to remind ourselves of the Fruit of the Spirit: Love, Joy, Peace, Longsuffering, Kindness Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self Control. When these characteristics develop in you, you will have patience to go that extra distance, to keep preaching the gospel even if many walk away when they hear it, never thinking that there’s no point to it. Don’t try to drag anyone kicking and screaming; guide them, answer their questions, be gentle, do not anger and do not attempt to force them to get results. If they don’t want to hear anything you have to say and walk away, you must respect their wishes and leave them alone.

When a Christian attempts to share their faith with a non-believer it is to help them to find the Lord and to receive the gift of Salvation freely, not to force their beliefs on them. When Jesus sent His disciples to spread the gospel, He directed them saying, if people do not receive you, move on.

There are billions of people in the world who need to hear the Gospel, so we must keep moving on to get to as many people as possible, the urgency is in the second coming of our Lord Jesus and we have absolutely no idea when this will be. It is not for us to labour at trying to change someone’s mind; we leave the Holy Spirit to work with people’s hearts and minds when drawing them to the Lord. If someone hardens their heart and mind against the Lord, no amount of cajoling will change it, but don’t be discouraged. Someone out there needs to hear the Gospel.

Be encouraged and keep going in Christ!

Blessings!

 

Be a Game Changer

11 Thursday May 2017

Posted by in Christianity, Faith, Spiritual Training, Spiritual Warfare

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Game Changer2

Your world was upside down without God; but now it is turned the right way up!  Make no mistake, Satan does not like this, he is mad and angry, actually he always is.

Let us remind ourselves of what we are dealing with here.  He challenges God at every turn, he knows there is no forgiveness for him so he hates the fact that there is forgiveness for us.  He will seek to destroy you at every turn as told to us in the following scripture:

John 10:10
The thief (Satan) comes not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy:

This is Satan’s purpose, to steal your salvation, to kill you and to destroy your life, and not just yours, but he will target your family and friends all at the same time.  He will try to use you to harm someone and then destroy you afterwards if you let him.  It is all a game to him, so when he brings his game to you, you need to be a game changer.  You need strategy, spiritual weapons, endurance and there is only one way you can be victorious over him and that is through Jesus Christ.  There is power in the name of Jesus and everything you do must be in His name.  God gave Him this name because of the power in it.

Philippians 2:9-11
Wherefore God also has highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.  

Satan and all his demons have to bow to the name of Jesus.  Whilst we acknowledge what he is capable of we do not fear him.  All Satan had to do in heaven was to look beautiful, worship God and be a leader over the angels under him, and he couldn’t even do that!  He could not fulfil his purpose and he does not want you to fulfil yours, so do not fear a failure and a continuous one at that.  He does not know what you are thinking unless you vocalise it, he cannot take your life because he did not create you and God will not allow it (however he can convince you to do it or convince some else to do it,) he has tactics.

He cannot create, because he is a created being, in a word he is ‘limited’ in what he can do to you.  His strategy is to remind you of your past sins, keep throwing the same temptations back at you and sometimes throw you some curve balls when you least expect it.  So you need to know the game.  The only way you will know the game is through studying the bible and prayer.

When someone hurt you, Satan will convince you through thoughts to seek revenge and to hurt them.  Our natural logic and the sin nature will want to seek to get even also.  He will use unwitting friends, family and acquaintances to convince you that what you are doing is right.  This is his game plan, but don’t play it with him, change the game.  Do it God’s way and love those who hurt you, the enemy will hate it, but there is nothing he can do about it because you have the power of the Holy Spirit protecting you and he cannot take on the Holy Spirit, he cannot win; but this is not to say he won’t keep trying.

Take advice and counsel from wise men and women of God and more importantly be led by the Holy Spirit.  To be a game changer you need to focus on Jesus, the Word of God; to turn Satan’s games on him.

Be blessed!

 

Walking with God!

10 Wednesday May 2017

Posted by in Christianity, Faith, Inspiration, Jesus, Love, Spiritual Training, The Gospel

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 Jesus footsteps2

For the best part of three and a half years twelve men walked with God, literally and in every sense of the word; on this earth. They lived with Him, ate with Him, prayed with Him, laughed with Him, cried with Him, worked miracles with Him… do I need to go on?

What an awesome, awesome honour! When I meditate on this it is very humbling that our God, came down out of heaven, to work with us and for us. He could have brought the mighty angels with Him; He could have done so many other things to fix us, but He chose to include us in His plan. And if that wasn’t awesome enough, He WASHED the feet of His disciples and after He rose from death, He COOKED for them… fish on the beach! People of God it doesn’t get any better than that.

Let’s take that in for a moment… then reflect on ourselves. When was the last time we did something that special for someone, whether we know them well or not? It is so easy to go through life focusing on ourselves and not putting anyone else first. Everything Jesus did was for others; for us. The level at which He humbled Himself for us, means that surely we can humble ourselves for each other. Remember we were created in His image and in His likeness; so it is possible to be like Him and indeed we should be.

Love started us on this journey and love will bring us through.  Often when relationships fail in life, you will hear people say ‘Love was not enough,’ and this belief is expressed in films and books again and again.  Whilst this statement is true to some extent it is not the whole story.  The truth is, “Our love is not enough but God’s love is more than enough and perfectly able to cope with anything we experience in life.”  We need to practice God’s unfailing, unconditional, unfathomable transcendent love.  Through it all things can be accomplished.

He was and still is our example of how to show real unconditional love to each other.  Being a trained Complementary Therapist; I enjoy helping people to look after their tired and overworked bodies; and of all the treatments I have done my most favourite is looking after peoples’ feet. Those poor little members do so much to bear us up, becoming sore and swollen after a long days’ work, yet often we treat them so poorly. Many will tell you they are disgusted with their feet, refuse to look at them or show them to anyone and absolutely refuse to let anyone else look after them.

This happens all too often in life. We can be dismissive, refuse to show love to others, embarrassed by each other, will not give unless we receive; yet no one is able to repay Jesus for the things He did and continues to do for us. Could we wash the feet of a tired brethren, show unparalleled hospitality to strangers and loved ones, without ever expecting some kind of repayment? He knew we couldn’t repay Him yet He did it anyway… To walk with God we must first walk in His footsteps, because now it is a Spiritual Walk!

Recommended Reading
The Gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke and John

 Stay Blessed!