Reflections of faith (How much) – 28 December 2018

He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. (John 14:21)

Jesus is speaking to His disciples and He tells them that He will leave them, and the world will see Him no more. He continues to say that they see Him and because He lives, we shall live, and we will know that He is in the Father and the Father is in Him. Jesus then says that He that keeps His commandments love Him and He that loves the Lord will be loved by the Father and the Lord will manifest (be clear) Himself in them.

How much do you love the Lord? Do you keep all His commandments, or do you break a few? Today I am reflecting on faith – my faith. How much do I love the Lord? Do I keep all His commandments? To be honest, not even close. I break more than one each day. All that I need is five minutes with my ex-wife and I have broken two or more. 

Jesus is clear when He says that loving Him goes hand in hand with keeping His commandments. How difficult can that be? For me, well I struggle a lot. I find myself in a place of many obstacles and when you come out of a long relationship especially one where the last 3 to 4 years you spend trying to make up for mistakes in the past, it can be a bit confusing and challenging at times.

So, where do I start with reconciling my life so that I can show the Lord more clearer in my life. It is back to the basics. Moving closer to God and getting a better understanding of my role is simply reading His word and spending time with Him in prayer. Lately I pray a lot, because I find that the more time, I spend with Him the more peace I have. 

Therefore, today’s word is for me (and maybe you) so that I can become the person God intended me to be in Him and He is in me. My life needs to reflect His love and grace and His peace, but my life also needs to reflect (manifest) His strength. 

You see, God is my strength and in His strength that flows through I am strong, and that strength is what I need to reflect on those around me. So, step 1, keep His commandments. Step 2, read His word and step 3, pray as often as you can.

Have an awesome day dear friend of Jesus. 

Cheers

Reflections of faith (Shelter) – 27 December 2018

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea. (Psalm 46:1-2)

When you think of it you will realise that your problems and challenges in life is planned ahead for years by the enemy. He is always busy pushing you into a direction so that you will fall into his trap. I can tell you I know, because I see it in my last one. He took his time and now he found a weakness in me that he is exploiting. You see when it comes to my kids, I have many weaknesses and the enemy is using everyone to get to me. 

Now, I have a hiding place. When the challenges get to me and the world around me tries to swallow me, I hide in my shelter. The Lord my God is my shelter, He is my refuge and my sanctuary. He is my place of safety and He is my strength when I find myself in need and in trouble. That is why I will not fear even if the world around me falls apart and believe me it happened a few times in past two months.

When the darkness comes, He is my light and when I get so upset at the pain, He is my peace. He will pick me up when I have fallen, and He will restore me when I am broken. He will guide me back to my path and He will carry me when I am weak. He will lead me to those fountains of hope and to those steams of still waters. 

He will prepare that table for me and my cup will run over, and I will shout out that the Lord is my refuge and my fortress and in Him alone will I place my trust. He will deliver me from the snare of the enemy and the pain of this world. He will fill me with His joy and He will realign my life with His plan and His path.

Surely goodness and mercy shall be with me all through my life and in the end I will dwell in the house of my Lord forever. 

Have an awesome day dear friend of Jesus. 

Cheers

Reflections of faith (Giving up) – 26 December 2018

Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. (Deuteronomy 31:6)

Yesterday started great with an awesome service at our church and the day with friends was really nice. But when I picked up my kids from their mom, I had to deal with the new man in her life that unexpectedly was invited to her Christmas lunch. From a high to a low in mere seconds. I realised that I am far from ready to move on and just accept everything. Suddenly the hurt of loss, pain and guilt flooded my system and I stood again in front of the door of giving up. 

I always say this is the silly season, but my goodness it went from silly to ridiculous in moments. I realised that I have no idea how to deal with this. I am not even closely equipped to handle this. When it comes to my kids, I am not good at sharing and I am in no way prepared for that. So, the roller-coaster of emotions ran through my mind all night. 

I woke this morning with still no answer of how to do this and I do not think I will have an answer tomorrow. I stared at the giving up door for a long time thinking why do I just not quit and just give up this fight. Why do I even try? It is all my fault and I guess that makes it even harder. It is really hard to stand in this storm.

I stared at my roof for a long time going through thousands of scenarios and options of what I can do. Sell the house… maybe. Leave the country…. Possibly. Jump of a bridge… could be done. So, as I lay there in my bed feeling miserable and very sorry for myself, I kept asking the question why. Why? Why? Why?

I realised that thousands of other people go through the same challenges and the same pain and I remembered this: “I will never leave nor; will I ever forsake you”. I realised that this immense feeling of brokenness and desertion is hard but when you look closely you will see God carrying me through it. He’s got me safely in His hands as He keep on reminding me that He loves me and that my mistakes are forgiven. I can let go of it and leave it in His hands. I realised that if it was not for His love and grace I would have been in a much worse state. 

So, I got up and I walked to my garage and I trained. I may be broken, and I may be in a thousand pieces, but I am in His hands. I may seem weak and lost but His voice remains my guide. I may have failed my God a hundred times, but His love for me never changes. I may feel like the worst father in the world, but the true father to my kids is my Father in heaven. 

So, I will stand up again, like I have done so many times before. I will rise up and I will break these chains again. I will not let the enemy get to me, but I will keep fighting him at every corner and in every moment of every day. I will rise up stronger and full of courage. 

Have an awesome day dear friend of Jesus. 

Cheers