Have you ever been in a tunnel whether by car or by train? As you enter the tunnel everything gets darker and darker until you virtually see nothing but darkness.
But as you are reaching the other side you begin to see a spot of light and as you get closer it gets lighter and lighter. Then as you exit the tunnel there’s an explosion of light all over and every details of your surrounding is seen. The Bible says in John 8:12 that Jesus is the light of the world. It also says that the entrance of His word gives light (Psalm 119:130) What does these precious words mean to us? We need to get as close as possible to Jesus whenever darkness surrounds us. God is well able is get us out of any difficult situation we may find ourselves in. God will give us the solution and bring His light on the subject. Is there anything troubling you right now? Let the Word of God shine upon the matter; let the Word flow, it will clear the problem. Did you know that the very first words ever spoken on this planet were: “LET THERE BE LIGHT.”? May His light shine on you today Be blessed and be safe Psalm 127:1 “Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain that built it.”
South Africa is in a changing state right now. Important decisions are constantly been made. If there was a time for trusting God and know His will for our nation, it’s right now. Without the knowledge and wisdom of the Almighty as a foundation for the future of ZA, nothing is going to work out. God is changing and rearranging things around us; He is lining up the past, present and future in preparation for the end-time move of His Spirit. Year ago a well-known evangelist said that South African was unto a sleeping giant waiting to wake up by the Spirit of God (That was in the 70’s). I believe the time has come for us as a nation to rise up to the challenge and re-instate God to His rightful place so that once against we may be called “a Christian nation” as it once was. The winds are changing and for a while it might not be comfortable for many, yet if God is involved in EVERY ASPECT OF THIS NATION’S DECISIONS, we will succeed. I am encouraging you to begin to join other believers in ZA to pray each day and ask God to lead and guide us. How many time do we pass the opportunity to pray? Think about all the time we spend gossiping about what is wrong with this nation…now it we prayed as much…just think! This is what I have learned as a pastor: If I pray for someone and believe God answers prayer, then I find it difficult to gossip and speak badly against the ones I am praying for.2 Timothy 2:4 “No soldier in active service entangles himself with the affairs of everyday life, so he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier.” Thoughts for the day: The shortest distance between you and God is the distance between your knees and the floor. Sin will keep prayer away, likewise prayer will keep sin away. Deuteronomy 1:2 declares that it only takes 11 days from Horeb to Kadesh Barnea. Yet it took the Israelites 40 years to get there. Even more the generation that entered the desert never made it out alive saved Caleb and Joshua.
The Bible explains that it was their attitude that kept them from entering into the land of milk and honey. As we know the Old testament serves as a testimony for us today. We have to learn from the people of old what not to do to miss the blessings of God. This is the beginning of 2014 and we need to consider and take stock of our lives. I believe that we need to be Kingdom minded and be mindful of God and His will for our lives. Read these verses: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.” (Ephesians 1:30 “According to His divine power has given all things that pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of Him that has called us to glory and virtue. Whereby are given unto us exceedingly great and precious promises; that by these you might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” (2 Peter 1:3,4) Our attitude toward trials and temptations we face each day will determine the outcome. We can be desert minded and see failure and death; or we can be kingdom minded and come out into the blessings God has in store for us. The question today is: WHAT IS MY REACTION WHERE THINGS DON’T GO ACCORDING TO PLAN? I remember an incident back in high school that impacted my life forever. It was during lunch break and I was on the first floor of the building. From there one had a plunging view unto the school yard where most of the scholars were at the time. My lunch consisted of sandwiches and an orange; as I finished the bread I noticed that the orange was very soft a bit gooey. I thought not to eat the orange and discard it. But as I looked on the school yard I noticed one of the prefect standing in the shade of a tree. I thought to myself “I bet I can hit the guy with the orange from up here and get away before anyone notices.” In one swing I threw the orange and clobbered the prefect right smack on the head “Bulleyes” I I thought as I got away ducking.
But to my demise, two students sitting in a classroom saw what happened. They began blackmailing me and demanded 50c (lots of money back in the 60’s) each day to keep them from running to the head-master. This went on for a couple of days (you must know that at the age of 14 the head-master is this giant man dressed in a black toga dishing out punishment like no one business…terrifying). One day I woke up and was running out of ideas to tell my parent why I needed 50c every day. So I decided ‘NO MORE’. That morning before class even began I went to the head-master and confessed. Well I did receive the rod but with every stroke I told myself, “I am free from my oppressors” and that overrode my pain. We have a similar situation in the Bible: John 8:34-36“I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. If the Son sets you free, you are free indeed.” Jesus took my place on the Cross of Calvary and the punishment for my sins He bore on His shoulders so that the devil could not blackmail me. Colossians 1:22“But now he (God) has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation.” Isn’t that precious? The sins I committed have been paid up and I cannot be held for ransom. The devil cannot accuse me nor put any guilt on me; all I have to do is to own up to my sins, go to the Father and confess.Decide to make Jesus your Lord and Saviour today, confess and repent of your sins and the blood of Jesus will do the work it did on the Cross, set you free.Be blessed and be safe In the service of the King, shalom Just think right now on how many have changed in 2013… and I am telling you now
that there will be even more changes in 2014. Nothing in the world around us ever remains the same. The weather is been affected, the money currency’s value is changing every second passing by, relationships are affected some for better and some for worst. You may have change your house, your car, your work, and even made new friends and lost old ones. Friends, family members and known persons have died. Some people have migrated to other countries, some have returned…the list goes on and on. But there is one fact that is sure: God will never change, He is the same today, yesterday and tomorrow (Hebrews 13:8). He Himself said: “I am God I change not.” (Malachi 3:6) I want to bring your attention to the most important verse in the entire Bible: Psalm 118:8 Why is this verse important? That very verse is the center of the Bible. There are 954 chapters before Psalm 118 and 954 chapters after Psalm 118. The shortest chapter in the Bible is Psalm 117 and the longest chapter is Psalm 119. When you add 954 to 954 it gives you 1188; Psalm 118:8 amazing isn’t it? So I think we should take good notice of what Psalm 118:8 says because God deemed it important to place it right in the very center of His Word. “It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man.” I invite you to read Psalm 106 today and see what happens when we forget the goodness of the Lord God Almighty.
Sometimes when things go well around us and we are in a good place (the comfort zone), we tend to forget the deeds of the Lord. Let me give you an example: you know when you are desperate for an answer from God and you know that He is the only One who really can help get you out of the mess you got yourself in. in these times when you pray, you have fire in your heart and in your mouth and nothing else matters at the time but God. When you read Ps 106 you notice that these people forgot about God when they prayers were answered and their eyes and minds began to wander around. They worshiped common things, made gods of metal and despised the Lord God who rescued them out of slavery. We read how they got, sickness, diseases and death. In the New testament Jesus puts it this way: you cannot serve God and Mammon. Many people today follow their own desires and serve their flesh to gain things for themselves only calling upon the Name of God when in trouble; but forgetting Him just as fast when things go well. The Bible says that God is not to be mocked, whatever a man sows, that will he reap. SO LET US BE VERY CAREFULL ABOUT OUR CHRISTIANITY. Do not call upon God in bad times only but remember Him in the good times as well. |
Ana & Andre Schoonbee God uses us to motivate and encourage the body. Authors
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