Take a chance on love

4 February 2011

Timothy II 1:7 For God did not give us a spirit of timidity but a spirit of power and love and self-control.

In life today we become afraid of many things, simply because experience teaches us and we are frightened of getting hurt. We are usually most hurt where we are most vulnerable, and when it comes to relationships we build up defence mechanisms to protect ourselves. So when we go out with others we hide behind our social small talk, we avoid commitment, we need to be free agents, yet within us we are lonely, alone within our thoughts, and we go home to a lonely table and a cold bed. Some of us are blessed with a loving family and a loving spouse and we just cannot understand why others are not equally blessed. The secret is, is that love drives out fear, and where we love, fear no longer has a hold. The truth of the secret is choose to love, to take a step in faith, to live life not in fear of our vulnerabilities but in our strengths.

People are getting married at a later stage in life than was the case thirty years ago, the result is that their experience of failure in broken relationships is greater than that of past generations. Having seen the failure they chose not to get into a meaningful relationship for fear of that failure, the cycle continues until they loose all hope of finding love. We all need to be encouraged, we all have fears, but what we do with these depends on the choices we make. We all need to take a chance on love.

Be encouraged today to take a chance on love.

 David

Point to ponder: Take a chance on love.

Question to consider:  Do you act out of fear?

Our webpage: www.chf.yolasite.com

Handling complaints

3February 2011

Proverbs 12:14 From the fruit of his words a man is satisfied with good, and the work of a man's hand comes back to him.

Certain businesses have developed a bureaucracy to protect their self interest and not the customer, others design their organisation to meet the need of the customer. So it is interesting to note how people respond in their organisations to a complaint. Here at Linga Longa the signal strength on cell phones are weak, and we have a contract with MTN although many people visiting use other service providers. In the last two weeks the signal strength of MTN has fluctuated dramatically causing the connection on 3G to cut. On trying to solve the problem, I have spoken to a call centre and they have taken the complaint and referred it to a third person, nothing happens. In the process I contacted Vodacom and within two hours the regional coverage contacted me, presented a plan of action and by the end of February a transmitter will be up and running in our area.

So one can see that different people respond differently to complaints and problems, some help to solve them, some help to make them worse. As a Christian we need to be aware that we are here to help others and to try to be part of the solution rather than part of the problem. When people speak to us about things that they are unhappy about especially within the church, we should not ignore it, but solve it. We are all part of the accountability structure and we cannot blame neither the Priest nor the Bishop, when we can do something for someone.

Be encouraged to take accountability and solve problems rather than cause them.

David

Point to ponder: We are accountable

Question to consider:  Do you pass the buck?

Our webpage: www.chf.yolasite.com

Living to your Name

2 February 2011

Acts 11:25-26 So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul; and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church, and taught a large company of people; and in Antioch the disciples were for the first time called Christians.

In the last few days we have had a flock of gorgeous shrike’s coming to visit us at Linga Longa, they keep up with their name! The are mainly green with an orange to red chest, with the top of their head being a bluish shade of light grey, their beaks are long. They swoop around catching insects, and then sit on the fence seeming to say, ‘watch me I’ll do it again’ down they swoop and do it again.

In most things we realise that they live up to their name, a gorgeous shrike can only be a what it is. So how we name things, will determine how we respond and they respond, a spider is a spider and it can only be the best spider it can be. So when we call people names, we then expect them to act according to the name we give them, and they usually do. When we call a person horrible or ugly, they will respond accordingly, and this although a generalisation, generally this proves itself to be true. When we call people in the positive this is also true, so for you and I that are called Christian, we can only be  a Christian, and we can only do what Christians do, we may not always do it perfectly, but we do it to the best we can do.

So be encouraged today to live up to your name ‘Christian’.

David

Point to ponder: We are called Christian ‘the anointed of Jesus Christ’

Question to consider:  Do you live up to your name?

Our webpage: www.chf.yolasite.com

Please if you need to send this to some one please do. If you want any help or advice I will be happy to try and help. dhutt@mweb.co.za

Holy Spirit Power

1 February 2011

1 Corinthians 2:3-5 And I was with you in weakness and in much fear and trembling; and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.

To be able to preach is to be able to proclaim the Kingdom of God is at hand, a message of repentance and the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Paul in the context of His audience knew that the people reading his letter would know what it means to be in the presence of a preacher who in his preaching demonstrated the Holy Spirit and in power. All the study of scripture, degrees and diplomas in theology and bible study, only leads us to the feet of the crucified Jesus Christ, no amount of learning or human wisdom can replace the demonstration of the Holy Spirit.

Our faith is not based on a logic or rationalism, it is based on a mystery, and so for many people even theologians they struggle with faith. Faith cannot be measured, it cannot be evaluated, and it cannot be contained, faith is infinite, yet it can be tested, it can be proved, it can be received by all. When we seek answers from human wisdom, we will find human solutions, when we seek answers from God, we will find heavenly solutions. This context must be understood when a preacher, preaches in the name and power of Jesus Christ, and it is this faith that the Holy Spirit responds and is then demonstrated in power.

Be encouraged today to let your faith rest in the power of God.

David

Point to ponder: Rest in God’s power

Question to consider:  Have you experienced Holy Spirit power?

Our webpage: www.chf.yolasite.com

Please if you need to send this to some one please do. If you want any help or advice I will be happy to try and help. dhutt@mweb.co.za

If you want to unsubscribe please email dhutt@mweb.co.za  

 

D

Weather

31 January 2011

Luke 12:54-5 He also said to the multitudes, "When you see a cloud rising in the west, you say at once, 'A shower is coming'; and so it happens. And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, 'There will be scorching heat'; and it happens.

The last few days have been very hot and sticky, and the nights have been warm and humid. There are many things that we need to be grateful for, one of them is a fan. When it is so hot a fan is essential, but it has its down side. We also use a fan to dry biltong and when we are sleeping the air seems to dry, in the morning one’s throat feels like a dry piece of biltong. My wife on the other hand seems to thrive on the cool fan, so she simply says don’t blame the fan, it is my snoring!

Weather is always a topic over which and about which we all can talk about, so it is wonderful leveller of conversation. We look at clouds and say this is what the weather will be like, or we check which way the wind is blowing, eventually we all become weather experts. It seems we are often more accurate in our guesswork than the trained guessing experts we see doing the weather reports. In the same way we are also able to become comfortable with our own opinions about many things, some of which are based on guess work and others on proven information. The problem comes when we consider our own opinions to be the only valid opinion. We need to be conscious of others and what the believe, we should allow people to express their views and in so doing allow them to form their own opinions.

We all have opinions about the weather, as well as about our faith, yet we find it easier to talk about the weather than about Jesus Christ. We should be as certain about our faith and about Jesus to a far greater extent, than the weather which is always changing.

Be encouraged today to allow people to have the freedom to form their own opinions.

David

Point to ponder: Jesus is more important than the weather.

Question to consider:  Are you opinionated?

Our webpage: www.chf.yolasite.com

Looking ahead

Enjoying the Sunshine of a Christian life at St Mark's

27 January 2011

Psalms 133:3 It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion! For there the LORD has commanded the blessing, life for evermore

This morning the area around Linga Longa was covered in mist and the ground was wet with the heavy dew, within a few moments after sunrise and the mist was gone. Sometimes in our lives the problems that come from yesterday, just needs the sun of a new day and they disappear like the morning mist. So when we have problems that seem to drag on, we may just need to bring them out into the sun.

We also need to have things to do that we look forward to, even though we may have anxiety, or stress about other things, they all need to have their time and space. So we need to think and plan about the things we like to do or want to do, so that we build an expectation in us of what to look forward to.

So for Val and I we have been looking forward to tonight since Christmas, tonight we are going to the theatre in Johannesburg and we are going to see the River Dance. So tomorrow we will still be in Johannesburg and we will come back later.

When we understand that God always wants us to look forward to the future then we need to find the things that helps us to do so.

Be encouraged today to look forward to the good things of tomorrow.

David

Point to ponder: Stop looking back.

Question to consider:  Do you look forward to the future?

Our webpage: www.chf.yolasite.com

Please if you need to send this to some one please do. If you want any help or advice I will be happy to try and help. dhutt@mweb.co.za

God's unchanging nature

26 January 2011

Deuteronomy 6:4-5 "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD; and you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.

I was asked the question whether prayer can actually change anything, if God is unchangeable. Most times we just accept that prayer can change anything, so we do not spend time thinking about it. Yet when a person seeking answers asks that question it would be inappropriate to answer with clichés. Our faith is so imbedded in the nature of prayer, that sometimes we forget about the nature of God. God is unchanging and bound by His own nature, it is impossible for God to change His nature, God does change the circumstances. We cannot ask God to be hateful to someone, because His nature is to love and care, we can pray that God will change the circumstance of that person, making it possible for the changed circumstances to reconcile ourselves to that person. When we reject what God expects us to do and the way we should live, then how will God be able to listen to our prayers?

God has set rules within which we as people need to respond to our situations and circumstances, and when we come to God in prayer we would be foolish to ignore these. God is God unchanging, immortal, ever present, all powerful, all seeing, all knowing, righteous, just, kind, merciful, compassionate, understanding, forgiving, gentle and we will run out of words to describe God. When we understand who God is and in comparison of who we are, we then understand that for God all things are possible. So often we come to God in prayer without examining our hearts, we treat God as if He is our servant, rather than our Holy God. We need to believe that God can do the impossible and is willing to do that when we ask it in prayer, not because of who we are, but because of who He is in terms of His unchanging nature.

When we understand this and humble ourselves before God, turning to Him and asking Him, He will turn to us and hear our prayers.

Be encouraged today to recognise the nature of God in prayer.

David

Point to ponder: God is God.

Question to consider:  Do you understand God’s unchanging nature?

Our webpage: www.chf.yolasite.com

Please if you need to send this to some one please do. If you want any help or advice I will be happy to try and help. dhutt@mweb.co.za