Burdens

13 June 2012  

     

Galatians 6:2 Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

There are many forms of burdens, some that are easy to bear and of our own making and others that are heavy and which may be that of someone else’s making. The weight that we often carry becomes so part of us that we actually are not aware of the fact that what we are carrying is not required to be carried. So we take on concerns and worries and these slowly stop us from actually fulfilling what Christ wants of us.

When we see someone that is heavy laden with care, we need to reach out to them to find ways for their load to become less. In love maybe to help them to carry the burden but to also recognise that when we fulfil the law of Christ, it requires us to trust Christ. In trusting we also need to recognise whether this is a legitimate burden and not a burden that the evil one has placed on us. We share each others burdens but we do not have to share that which does not grow the Kingdom of God.

Be encouraged today to share another’s burden to help them to walk the path to freedom in Christ.

 

David

 

Point to ponder: Not all burdens need to be carried.

Question to consider: Have you given your burden to Jesus Christ?

 

Heart hardened

12 June 2012  

     

Mark 6:51-52 And he got into the boat with them and the wind ceased. And they were utterly astounded, for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.

Many of us do not realise just how hardened our hearts have become to the Gospel message, we have bibles, we read, we pray, we spend time in church, yet our hearts are hardened. How is this possible? Just as the disciples hade been part of the sharing of the bread and the fish, playing a major role in serving the 5000 men, then seeing and experiencing Jesus walking on water and getting into their boat, this was something that they did not understand so their hearts hardened. The harder the heart the harder is it for a person to understand.

For us today we read these stories and we understand them as stories, but do we really understand the magnitude of what these stories relate. Only God can multiply bread and fish to the extent of what happened, it is only God that is able to command the elements, it is only God that can do these things. This was God, the Son of Man, that was there in the boat with them, this was more than just Messiah, this was God Messiah, a God that saves

The early disciples, eye witness to these events struggled to understand, and we today still struggle to understand that we have a God Messiah, who will feed us when we are hungry, help us when we are struggling, and heal us when we are sick.

Be encouraged today to recognise God Messiah in your life today.

 

David

 

Point to ponder: Do not harden your heart because you do not understand.

 

Question to consider: Is not faith the beginning of understanding?

Animals in heaven

8 June 2012      

   

Isaiah 11:6 The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them.

Will there be animals in heaven? Many are the debates on this issue, some saying that heaven is the place of the soul and animals do not have souls, therefore no animals in heaven. This long and heated debate is interesting, as most of the people debating may never get to heaven themselves, their animals may be there long before them! Heaven is where God is, and God created all things for His pleasure and to glorify Him, in heaven the lion will walk with the lamb.

So when people ask you if their pet which died is going to heaven, then our response should be whether their lifestyle will get them into heaven. Nobody knows what is truly in heaven, except those who have been to heaven, and each of us have some kind of concept of heaven, yet the bible tells us that heaven is better than every concept we may have ever had. Simply because where heaven is, is where Jesus is.

Be encouraged today to look forward to a heaven beyond your wildest dreams.

David

 

Point to ponder: Heaven is where Jesus is.

 

Question to consider: What is your heaven like

Knowledge

4June 2012          

1 Corinthians  8:1-3 Now concerning food offered to idols: we know that "all of us possess knowledge." "Knowledge" puffs up, but love builds up. If any one imagines that he knows something, he does not yet know as he ought to know. But if one loves God, one is known by him.

Sometimes loving someone is to also to say no, many are the times because we love someone, we give into what they want, yet what they want will hurt them. In the same way people want to serve God and they think that to do so they must study to be ordained into the clergy. The reality is that we have all been called to serve Jesus Christ where we are in the time we are there. Some people like to serve God by studying and writing exams, learning more about the experiences of others, rather than gaining the experience through being obedient and doing faithfully what God has called them to do.

It is not what we know that counts but whom we know when it comes to being in relationship with someone. I know a lot about the Queen of Great Britain, but I have never met her and I do not know her. Thank the Lord when it comes to Jesus I know Him because I have met Him, I know Him through His Word, I know Him through a personal experience of meeting with Him in the spirit, I know Him through the experience of Him working in and through me to the glory of Our Father.

Be encouraged today to faithfully serve Jesus Christ where you are.

 

David

 

Point to ponder: Knowledge without experience stays in the study.

 

Question to consider: Are you serving Jesus where you are?

Heal the sick

1 June 2012      

   

James 5:15 And the prayer of faith will cure the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up. And if he has committed sins, it will be forgiven him.

This coming weekend I will be in Carletonville, and I will be teaching and equipping the local congregation in the healing ministry. Also on Saturday morning I will have the privilege of speaking to the local presbytery about the work of the healing ministry and its importance in the Gospel message. The urgency of the work cannot be understated and we need to be more forceful in proclaiming the Gospel.

Having had surgery and a deep vein thrombosis, followed by physiotherapy, and then still having to face to go back to hospital, I understand in a small way how many thousands of people feel and have to face each day. Listening in waiting rooms to the stories of others and their deep needs, who is there that will bring them hope? So many people today have to face situations, often alone and isolated, who will bring them the good news, that God loves them and cares? Every Christian has the obligation to care for the sick, not just our family but also the sick and hurting stranger.

Be encouraged today to care for the sick.

 

David

 

Point to ponder: We are all called to heal the sick.

 

Question to consider: Are you involved in a healing ministry?

Communication

31 May 2012      

 

James 4:2-3 You desire and do not have; so you kill. And you covet and cannot obtain; so you fight and wage war. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.

Good communication ensures that the message that is transferred is accurate and understood by the person you are communicating with.  Some of us are better able to communicate than others, maybe because of experience, or that some people hear but do not listen. An example of this is when you have plenty nails in the store and a person needs a nails to complete a job, instead of asking for nails, they spend an hour scratching and straightening rusted nails, and then give up and use incorrect screws. All they had to do was ask and they would have received what they asked for.

I suppose in the same way, most of us are poor communicators when it comes to conversations with God our heavenly Father, we receive not because we ask not.  Each of us are on this earth with a God-given purpose, and God knowing that knows what we need even before we ask. We still need to ask, because God loves to be conversation with us. I know many of get so busy doing it on our own that we forget to include God in our plans, and we just carry on without talking to Him. It is like a husband coming home, so involved in his own thoughts that he stops talking in the house, so in a way excluding his wife from his inner conversation. We should all become more conscious of how we communicate.

Be encouraged today to ask for what you need, it may surprise you what you get.

 

David

 

Point to ponder: If you do not ask, you do not get.

Question to consider: How good are you at communicating your needs?

Compassion

30 May 2012       

Matthew 9:36-38 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few; pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his harvest."

This last Monday I had to visit with the Surgeon and he was not happy with the bending and straightening of my knee, so once again I will have to be in hospital for him to manipulate the knee. Fortunately I will only be in hospital next Wednesday night. So as I grow in experience I understand more of what so many people have to go through. Thank God I have Jesus in my life, I do not know how I would have coped if I could not have the hope that He gives me. Because of His compassion for me, I know that He knows my pain and anxiety.

Last Sunday visiting a local church in Johannesburg, the congregation was saying their farewells to an elderly couple who have sold their home and are moving to a retirement complex. He has been ill and his wife has been nursing him at home, my heart filled with compassion for both of them, especially when you give up your home and have to face illness etc. My impression is that the church today has lost its passion for compassion, and this leaves a spiritual emptiness amongst us.

Be encouraged today to become compassionate and feel the pain of others, just as Jesus does for you and I.

 

David

 

Point to ponder: Compassion is a gift from God.

Question to consider: Are you compassionate towards others?