In All Things

With the recent flooding we’ve had here in Australia, lives have been lost, homes destroyed, crops devastated. This has been a terrible time for many of us. It would be all too easy to blame God. He has the power to save us, so why doesn’t He?

In times of tragedy, heartache and misery, we have to remind ourselves that God has already saved us. He is in control and in all things He works for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8:28). He loves us too much to let us fall.

We may never understand why He protects us from some tragedies and not others, but we can trust that God will work even the worst of things for our good. Already we have seen the community come together to help those in need, we’ve seen amazing acts of bravery and selflessness. Though it might be hard to believe, many of us will forever be changed for the better.

Please pray for all the people who have been touched by the terrible floods, pray for those who grieve, and those who are on the verge of giving up. Pray that they find strength in God’s comfort.

Embrace Your Powerlessness

None of us like the idea of being powerless. It’s a difficult thing to accept because we’re told throughout our lives that we are masters of our own destiny. We’re told we must be in control. And so we try to control our lives; we sometimes even try to control other people’s lives. We take on the world with the conviction that we have the power to at least control our corner of it. But in truth we don’t and we can’t.

No matter what we do we can’t control the weather, we can’t control the passage of time, we can’t choose our family, we can’t pick the gift or abilities we are graced with and we have no idea what’s around the next corner. We are powerless to the drunken driver, the debilitating sickness, the unexpected tragedy.

And so I ask, wouldn’t it be better to hand all control over to the One who does have the power? Wouldn’t it be better to allow God to rule you, rather than your schedules, your jobs, your financial situations? After all, God knows you better than you know yourself and He cares what happens to you. He knows everything. He has already saved your eternal soul, so why not let Him save your life on earth as well? You have nothing to fear when He is in control.

Embrace your powerlessness. Accept it. Revel in it. Praise the Lord for it. Because He is the one with the power and He knows how to use it.

Soul Trade

Countless stories have cropped up over the ages about those willing to sell their souls for something they desire, usually knowledge, youth, fortune or power. As Christians we would like to believe we would never do such a thing. However, is it possible to sell your soul without realising it?

Apparently thousands of gamers sold their souls to a gaming company. The company wrote the clause into their terms and conditions. Who ever shuffles through all that fine print? The company intended it as a light-hearted joke, but it made a very good point. You can read about it here.

So many of us sell our souls and we don’t even realise it. We neglect to read the fine print. We think it’s enough to attend church. We think it’s enough to believe in Jesus. We think we are saved if we are good people. But we are mistaken.

We deny God when we decide we don’t need Him. We deny Him when we think our actions alone can save us. We deny Him when we don’t include Him in our lives, when we toss Him down our list of priorities, when we fail to recognise his awesome greatness.

So, rather than pushing our Lord away, embrace Him and all that He offers. Remind yourself daily of His worthiness, His wonder, His amazing love. Give Him your soul, your mind, your body and your strength. He will keep you safe.

Wallpaper of the Week – Isaiah 41:13

Our Lord does hold onto us, He does protect us.

Our Lord reassures us that we don't need to fear.

He promises He will help us.

We can accept His hand 

because we can trust Him.

We can accept His protect

because He does not lie.

We can accept His help

because He loves us,

And he will ensure

no harm comes to us.

Life Rescue

Apparently about 150 people fall from large ships each year and three quarters of them are not found again. I can’t even image what it would be like to know you are no more than a speck in a vast ocean and the likelihood of being found is near zero. This is a tragic loss of life and a terrible way to go.

The good news is that a pair of clever Australian inventors created life buoys fitted with Global Positioning Systems. The floatation aids use the satellite tracking technology to help rescue crews find people lost at sea.

They are currently still in the trial process, but this led me to thinking about how God doesn’t need technology to find us.

He will find us in the storms.
He will find us in the fogs.
He will find us in the darkness.

God is our Rescuer.

He keeps us afloat when the anxieties of life threaten to drown us. We only have to reach out and accept that help.

The Price of Free

Our old home was a dungeon. We used to be chained there… in the dark...waiting to die. Then Jesus freed us. He broke our chains, he took our place and then he paid the price of our punishment. We couldn’t earn this freedom. We couldn’t buy this freedom. We couldn’t steal this freedom. He gave it to us freely. And so it cost us nothing to accept this gift.

But there is a cost to following Jesus. It’s important to know this. If we blindly follow Him, expecting rainbows and candy, then we will fall away the moment any form of conflict comes our way. Below I have listed some of the costs:

The cost of alienation: We no longer belong to the world. We are outcasts to its ways. We are set apart and different. No longer can we laugh at the lewd jokes. No longer can we gather in the workplace kitchens and exchange gossip. No longer can we bad-mouth someone else because they bad-mouthed us. We must face persecution without striking back.

The cost of self denial: God must come first. We are no longer number one. We must deny our pride, our self reliance, our stubbornness. God must come first, even above our spouses, our children, our friends and our jobs.

The cost of reliance: We must give up our independence. We must put our trust in God and rely on Him in everything we do.

The cost of vigilance: We can’t relax and take it easy. We must be forever vigilant for the subtle things that turn our attention away from God. We can’t take a break. We can’t fall back on our old ways.

Are you prepared to pay the price of following Jesus? Can you think of other costs to add to this list?

Tomorrow I will talk about the REWARD of following Jesus, which far out-weighs the cost.

Persecute Me

Tell me I’m foolish. Ostracise me from your groups. Hate me. Reject me.

It only makes me stronger.

Throw stones at me. Chase me from your homes. Steal from me.

It only makes me stronger.

Say cruel things to me. Lock me in a prison. Do your worst.

It only makes me stronger.

I am stronger because I have my Lord who shields me from everything that could ever be done to me. His love for me shines through all the fear, all the hate, all the persecution.

He is Glory.

He is Life

He is mine.

The Attitude of Age

Continuing on the theme of perception, I thought I’d talk about that dreaded thing called old age. Why are we so obsessed with age? Why do we spend ridiculous amounts of money on make up, chemicals, surgery, even airbrushing, in the never ending search for youthfulness? What are we so afraid of?

Some days I feel like 101 and yet other days I still feel like a teenager even though those years are long gone. Is it all just a matter of perception?

The European Social Survey (the ESS) polled 40 000 people to see the differing opinions of the definition of ‘old age’. Apparently those aged 15-24 thought that youth ended at just 28 and old age started at 54. However, those in their 80’s regard the final year of youth to be 42 and old age began at 67. These numbers also varied in differing countries. For example, in Portugal they were no longer young at 29, but in Cyprus it was 45. Even climate, education and types of jobs factor in the equation. If you feel younger then old age seems further away.

I often wonder what it will be like when my knees give out, my bones become brittle, my eyesight worsens and the wrinkles take root. And then I remember that regardless of how old we feel, despite the fear we carry deep down inside, our Lord reassures us that He will be there. He will be our strength when we are weak. He keeps us young in spirit.

Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you. Isaiah 46:4 (NIV)

Are you struggling with that label “old age”? What is the best thing about growing older? How do you keep young?

Danger Bay

A few years ago my husband and I took a meandering road trip down to Melbourne. Along the way we decided to stop for a picnic lunch. We turned off the main road and travelled down a winding dirt track. According to the maps we were headed towards Danger Bay. It was the name that enticed me. It promised adventure. The ever-present child in me thought up images of pirates and stormy seas.

What we discovered was even better. We found a secluded beach that was perfect in every way. It had the white sands and the jewel-like ocean sparkling in the sun. It had dappled shade for a picnic and sandstone walls to shelter us from the wind. No one else was around and I delighted in making fresh footprints in the soft sand.

What captured me the most about the place was the peacefulness. It didn’t fit the name. Where was the danger? Then I realised a strong wind was blowing out on the sea. Jagged rocks lay hidden under the waters. Ships could easily get wrecked on this shore.

This world we live in is very much like Danger Bay. We aren’t always able to recognise the danger that waits for us. We might think we are safe. We might think that we are in a good place, especially if things are going well for us. But the truth is, God is our only safe haven. He offers us peace and protection that we can rely on. All we have to do is trust him and then we will enjoy a place within ourselves that is as perfect as that beach.