Today Reminder - 13 April 2012 (Harmony)

My prayer for you for today is that God will bring peace in your life that will rule your hearts, in Jesus name.

Colossians 3:14-15

Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.

Harmony. It is sad that the devil will use anything in His power to hurt us and to break our faith. He is the master of chaos and pain and as soon as your relationship with God becomes stronger he will try and bring you down. I always say it is much easier to give advice than to accept advice. We can be so stubborn at times and yet when the walls start to fall we seek help. What is so amazing is how God can bring peace into your life so quickly as soon as you call upon Him in times of sorrow. With the sickness of our baby boy and quick unexpected change in his condition that led to his hospitalisation, I could feel how the devil was fighting so hard to break the peace God has already brought into our lives. But hurting you in one place is never enough, he will seek out all possible places and so he added to our pain in a number of ways that brought me to place where I was vulnerable. As I stood in the midst of this new storm in my life I could hear the Holy Spirit talking softly, reassuring me and lifting me out of my misery into God’s light and slowly as I opened my heart He returned the peace that the devil so dearly wanted to destroy. 

I pray for you today my dear friend, that the peace that comes from Jesus will rule your hearts and that you will seek God first in all your pain and sorrow so that the enemy cannot bring you down and in no way defeat you and make you vulnerable. I pray that you will stand amongst us, clothed with love, so that we are all united in perfect harmony making us strong, and making our faith unbreakable. 

And always be thankful.

Have an awesome peaceful and victorious day, dear friend of Jesus.

Cheers

Today Reminder - 12 April 2012 (Tender-hearted)

My prayer for you for today is that you will forgive as God forgave you, in Jesus name.

Colossians 3:12-13

Since God chose you to be the holy people He loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other's faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.

Tender-hearted.  Then Peter came to Him and asked, "Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?"  - "No, not seven times," Jesus replied, "but seventy times seven! (Matthew 18) I think this must be the one place I have fallen so many times in my life, to have mercy and to be kind and gentle and to be patient and most of all, to accept other people’s faults. Accepting the fact that other people also have faults is a daily struggle and I think in most of our daily skirmishes this can be quite an uphill battle. Isn’t it funny that we sometimes have the least patience and kindness for those the closest to us. The example Jesus sets in forgiving is so remarkable and yet so many times we are so quick to forget that. To start with Jesus asked the Father to forgive the people when He was hanging from the cross: Luke 23:34 Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they don't know what they are doing." How easy do you forgive when you are mistreated? And then to top it, Jesus gave up His life so that you and I can be forgiven of our sins. Would you give up your life for someone that offended you?

My dear friend, I pray that God will fill your thoughts with His great love in every situation you find yourself so that you will treat those around you with mercy, kindness, humility and patience and that you will forgive those that offend you and accept people for their faults. It is in these unselfish acts that God will be glorified and you will be lifted to a higher and closer relationship with God. But most of all, it will make you a powerful adversary against a relentless enemy.

Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.

Have an awesome day dear friend of Jesus.

Cheers

Today Reminder - 11 April 2012 (Home)

My prayer for you for today is that your focus will be on the realities of heaven so that we will all share in His glory when Jesus returns, in Jesus name.

Colossians 3:1-4

Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God's right hand. Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all His glory.

Home is where the heart is. I love going home to my parents, taking the long drive through all the places you have travelled so many times before. Driving down into the valley overlooking all the farms and seeing all the green pastures as the sun touches it all revealing the beauty of God’s creation. It is such a beautiful place nestled in the heart of what is now called Limpopo, with its life giving rivers and beautiful trees, interesting people and slow moving time. Yet that is how I remember it growing up, now so much has changed with land claims and over populated areas, pollution, slowly deteriorating roads and the increase in crime. It saddens one when such a beautiful gift from God can so easily be abused by greed. Now more so is it important that we set our sights on the realities of heaven, the clear crumbling of a dying world should change our focus to what is eternal. We have been lifted to a new life in Jesus and the treasures of this world should have no more value to us. Home should be heaven, and this is where you heart must be. Jesus makes it so clear in Matthew 6:19-20 - "Don't store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal.”

My dear friend, our real life is in Jesus and when He is revealed to this world we will share in His glory and we will live with Him for eternity. Focus on the things of heaven and make this your priority, and do not seek the small treasures of this world, but instead the real treasure that is Jesus Christ.

Have an awesome day living for Jesus.

Cheers

Today Reminder - 10 April 2012 (Going Home)

My prayer for you for today is that you will continue to follow Jesus with a passion deeply rooted on His foundation, in Jesus name.

Colossians 2:6-7

And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow Him. Let your roots grow down into Him, and let your lives be built on Him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.

Going home. Going back to your roots can be an emotional journey. What a blessing to have been able to go home to my parents over the weekend and to see our family again. As I listened to my niece telling me how they went back to our old farm to see it again after so many years and how that brought back so many memories, I can’t help to think that each day should begin with a return to Jesus journey. Paul says that you must let your roots grow down into Him and you must let your lives be built on Him.

My dearest friend, each day should begin like that. Each day we must grow our roots into Jesus and start each day on Him, remembering what He has done and is still doing in your life. This will not only bring peace into our day but it will strengthen us for every situation that we could face where the enemy will try to pull us of our foundation. When you are well rooted in Jesus, nothing will bring you down, but beyond that Paul says that then you faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught and you will overflow with thankfulness.

This is the place where I pray we will get to, the place where you will stand strong on the truth that is Jesus Christ with a thankful heart, because as soon as you realise that everything is and is from God you will stand faithful and overflow with thankfulness. It is here where the enemy does not want you to be, because you will see the world differently as you completely and faithfully trust Him thankfully, were you will be incorruptible with roots deeply grown into Jesus.

Have an awesome day dearest friend of Jesus.

Cheers

Today Reminder - 09 April 2012 (Treasures)

My prayer for you for today is that you will seek wisdom and knowledge from Jesus so that you will never be deceived, in Jesus name.

Colossians 2:3-4

In Him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. I am telling you this so no one will deceive you with well-crafted arguments.

Treasures. We are so often misguided by clever ideas and well-argued statements that we can so easily be overwhelmed into silence. It is the enemy’s strategy to make bold assumptions with no proof but merely an idea to bring so many people to a point where they start to question the wrong side. All the wisdom and knowledge is in God and yet we seek guidance at so many wrong places and we listen so easily to the wrong people.

Let us return to God and seek His presence and His wisdom, so that those with wrong ideas and well-crafted arguments have but no influence on us as we remain focussed and guided by God in Jesus Christ our saviour.

My dear friend, ask God to be your translator when you are confronted with arguments, especially when the Holy Spirit tells you they are wrong. Spend time in prayer and study the word so that you will see God’s true message in each passage. Seek the treasures of God’s wisdom and knowledge and ask God to give you wisdom so that you will stand boldly for what is right.

Have an awesome day

Cheers

Today Reminder - 06 April 2012 (Resurrected)

My prayer for you over this awesome time is that you will be reminded of the amazing gift God gave us in the resurrection of Jesus and that you will tell it wherever you go and in all that you do, in Jesus name.

Colossians 1:28-29

So we tell others about Christ, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all the wisdom God has given us. We want to present them to God, perfect in their relationship to Christ. That's why I work and struggle so hard, depending on Christ's mighty power that works within me.

Resurrected. I am always amazed at this time of year as we enter the Easter weekend. Even now after so many years the enemy cannot quiet the defeat he had in the resurrection of Jesus. What an amazing time to not only celebrate our freedom from sin but to share the amazing miracle with those that are still lost or does not fully understand the implications of a life without Jesus. Jesus stated it so clearly that if you deny Him here on earth He will deny you in heaven. To me this is not a light statement and I believe so many do not grasp the implications of being denied by Jesus in front of the Almighty God. It is so important that we bring this message across and make people realise that the lives they live has a direct implication on the lives they will have when the Lord returns. 

People are so easy to forget that they will share in the devil’s fate if they do not change their ways and give their lives to Jesus. So we tell others about Christ, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all the wisdom God has given us. More so is it important for us to live a life that shows Jesus to the world, because we so easily forget that we Christians is God’s picture to the world and to those that so desperately seek Him. 

My dear friend, we have an enormous responsibility to be Jesus to those who does not know Him and especially now when the whole world celebrates Easter. Don’t miss the opportunity to tell others about Jesus and don’t stop even if the struggle is hard. I pray that you will be filled with God’s mighty power so that you will boldly shout out the miracle of the cross of Jesus.

Have an awesome Easter, because we can celebrate the death of sin and the victory over the enemy – Super Awesome!

Cheers

Today Reminder - 05 April 2012 (Reconciled)

My prayer for you for today is that they enemy will find no place to accuse you and that you will know that you have been reconciled to God, in Jesus name.

Colossians 1:19-20

For God in all His fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through Him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ's blood on the cross.

Reconciled. I love this comparison “reconciled”, God reconciled everything to himself. In the payroll world we know that to reconcile is to balance the input with the actual events. We balance figures on our systems to the values we paid and only when all is reconciled and balanced we submit to the receiver of revenue. When I look at the word reconciled, to me it means God took you and balanced you to Him so that you can be and look like Him. Awesome isn’t it? Jesus came and made all this possible, but you have to look at the next section from verse 21: This includes you who were once far away from God. You were His enemies, separated from Him by your evil thoughts and actions. Yet now He has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in His physical body. As a result, He has brought you into His own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before Him without a single fault.

 

Now what is so amazing is just this, because you are reconciled to God you stand in His presence, holy and blameless. So my dear friend, the poor devil is fighting a losing battle against you. You are already holy and blameless before God through Jesus Christ who took all the accusations and sin and destroyed them on the cross. You are free to live completely for Him and in no way can you be discouraged because you are reconciled/reunited to God. 

But you must continue to believe this truth and stand firmly in it. Don't drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News. Stand firm and be strong and live your life knowing who you are in Jesus, and be holy as He who dwells in you is holy.

Have and awesome day dear friend of Jesus

Cheers 

Today Reminder - 04 April 2012 (Laminin)

My prayer for you for today is that you will once again know how great our God is and that you will worship Him with all your heart, in Jesus name.

Colossians 1:15-17

Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, for through Him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can't see—such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through Him and for Him. He existed before anything else, and He holds all creation together.

Laminin. When I first heard Louie Giglio talk about laminin I was just amazed at what I saw. Coming across this passage this morning and looking at laminin once more I can’t help but to be amazed over and over again. Our God is an awesome God and with something like this, how can you not believe. My dear friend this is a faith booster for you this morning.

According to Wikipedia, it says, “…Basically, laminin is a protein found in the “extracellular matrix”, the sheets of protein that form the substrate of all internal organs also called the “basement membrane. Laminin is vital to making sure overall body structures hold together. Improper production of laminin can cause muscles to form improperly, leading to a form of muscular dystrophy.  It can also cause progeria.” In layman terms, laminin is like the foundation of a building. In short, laminin is like the glue that holds us together. But more importantly, do you know what laminin looks like?  Check this out:

 

Imagine, we all have millions of microscopic crosses holding our body together!  Is that cool or what?

Therefore I will rejoice and I will shout out His praises because: Everything was created through Him and for Him. He existed before anything else, and He holds all creation together. Not only does He live in us, but He also holds us together. What an amazing God.

Today will be an awesome day, let’s give glory to God in each moment, each minute and with each breath.

Cheers

Today Reminder - 03 April 2012 (Forgiven)

My prayer for you for today is that you will remember the prize that was paid for your sins and that you will thrive in knowing that you are free from sin, in Jesus name.

Colossians 1:13-14

For He has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of His dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins.

Forgiven. Today’s reminder is a reminder of the amazing love an awesome God has for each of us. Jesus came into this world and destroyed the kingdom of darkness and with this He rescued us from eternal death into a life where we can have eternal life. I can’t help but to imagine the humiliation, the pain and the suffering He took out of love to break an eternal curse and with this He purchased freedom for all. So I have a song in my head that I wish to share with you today – Amazing love from Hillsong.

I'm forgiven, because you were forsaken
I'm accepted, you were condemned
I'm alive and well, you're spirit is within me
Because you died and rose again

I'm forgiven, because you were forsaken
I'm accepted, you were condemned
I'm alive and well, you're spirit is within me
Because you died and rose again

Amazing love, how can it be
That you my king would die for me
Amazing love, I know it's true
It's my joy to honor you
Amazing love, how can it be
That you My king would die for me
Amazing love, I know it's true
It's my joy to honor you
In all I do I honor you

I'm forgiven, because you were forsaken
I'm accepted, you were condemned
I'm alive and well, you're spirit is within me
Because you died and rose again

Let us live this day knowing that He died to save us, but let’s not just live with that knowledge, let’s live a life that will boldly shout that knowledge out to the world proclaiming that Jesus saved us and that we are free from the burden of sin and free from the kingdom of darkness as we live and walk in the kingdom of light.

Have an awesome free and forgiven day dear friend of Jesus.

Cheers

Today Reminder - 02 April 2012 (Endurance)

My prayer for you for today is that you will have endurance and that God will strengthen you so that you will endure to the end, in Jesus name.

Colossians 1:11-12

We also pray that you will be strengthened with all His glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need. May you be filled with joy, always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to His people, who live in the light.

Endurance. It is always funny to watch spectators, they always know more than the athletes and there are those that thinks they could do it better than the actual athlete. It is a different story going through months of preparation and then finally standing on the field to compete. The race of life is much the same. When we stand on the outside living a mild life, we are easy to find fault in the lives of those that is living for Christ, but the minute we step into the race we realise how hard it is and so many give up and just remain in between. They are mostly the ones who make the most noise with the least impact. I have seen it so many times in my own life, how easy it is to rise and fall. We climb the ladder towards God, but somewhere the enemy will find a weak step and we will fall. 

So it has become imperative that we endure and that we remain patient. It is my prayer then today for us all that we will endure through all that the enemy can throw in our way and that we will patiently hold on to God and trust that He will provide us with strength and power so that we will overcome the trials and tribulations that this life can bring and that we will be victorious so that we may be filled with joy, always thanking the Father. He has enabled us to share in the inheritance that belongs to His people, who live in the light.

Have an awesome and enduring day dear friend of Jesus.

Cheers