Faithful

"Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commandments." - Deuteronomy 7:9 

God is faithful. 

God keeps his promises. 

God shows up, when all else looks grim and bleak.

“This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again." - John 3:16-18 (The Message)

Living in Grace

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Moving towards Courage

"But Christ, as the Son, is in charge of God’s entire house. And we are God’s house, if we keep our courage and remain confident in our hope in Christ.” – Hebrews 3:6

I had never really considered 'Courage' to involve some kind of movement or action. By this I mean that an obvious end-result of courage is usually some kind of action, but are there some steps we can take to get this courage? If you look at the following verses, you will note that there seems to be some action involved:

Deuteronomy 31:6 - Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

1 Chronicles 17:25 - “You, my God, have revealed to your servant that you will build a house for him. So, your servant has found courage to pray to you.

Matthew 14:27 - But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”

All of these scriptures seem to suggest that we can position ourselves to "be courageous"; "find courage" or "take courage."

I am not 100% sure what this looks like, but I am sensing that our confidence in Christ's promises has something to do with our willingness to move towards Courage. What do you make of this? How can we move towards this Christ-like Courage? 

Living in Grace

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Not sure how I feel about this - what do you think?!

Sometimes we read things in the Bible that make sense, on one level, but also sound a little scary or even unfair, on another level. Take this verse as an example: 

Deuteronomy 8:2 - Remember how the Lord your God led you through the wilderness for these forty years, humbling you and testing you to prove your character, and to find out whether or not you would obey his commands.

Or this one, which is referring to Hezekiah: 

"However, regarding the ambassadors of the princes of Babylon, whom they sent to him to inquire about the wonder that was done in the land, God withdrew from him, in order to test him, that He might know all that was in his heart." (2 Chronicles 32:31)

I am okay about God using testing times to teach me things, but not sure how I feel about God testing me to see what's in my heart. Especially the part about withdrawing from me. Maybe it is just the language that is used, that makes me a little nervous, or perhaps I just need to trust more in the ways of God.

How do you feel? Any thoughts? 

Living in Grace

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Help is on the way

If ever there was a picture of God coming to our rescue, then this must be it:

“There is no one like the God of Jeshurun,
Who rides the heavens to help you,
And in His excellency on the clouds.
27 The eternal God is your refuge,
And underneath are the everlasting arms;" - Deuteronomy 33:25-27 (NKJV)

I can't but help think of God riding on the clouds of heaven, rushing to be at our side. 

What part of this passage lives with you today? Will you let God help you in your time of need?

"The whole trouble is that we won't let God help us." - George MacDonald

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Character versus reputation

If ever you wondered if there was a difference between the Character of a person and their Reputation, perhaps these words will help you reflect on which is more valuable.

"The circumstances amid which you live determines your reputation; the truth you believe determines your character.

Reputation is what you are supposed to be; character is what you are.
Reputation is the photograph; character is the face.

Reputation comes over one from without; character grows up from within.
Reputation is what you have when you come to a new community; character is what you have when you go away.
Your reputation is learned in an hour; your character does not come to light for a year.
Reputation is made in a moment; character is built in a lifetime.
Reputation grows like a mushroom; character grows like the oak.
A single newspaper report gives you your reputation; a life of toil gives you your character.
Reputation makes you rich or makes you poor; character makes you happy or makes you miserable.
Reputation is what men say about you on your tombstone;
character is what angels say about you before the throne of God. (William Hersey Davis)

Deuteronomy 8:2 - Remember how the Lord your God led you through the wilderness for these forty years, humbling you and testing you to prove your character, and to find out whether or not you would obey his commands

Living in Grace

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God in action

I was struck by how active God was in the life of the Israelites. I don't think anything has changed in God's nature and so we hold onto the promise that Jesus is active in our lives too. Of course there are times when we struggle to see this and to remember, but it is then that we need to be reminded. Take these verses as an example:

"He led you through the vast and dreadful wilderness, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock. He gave you manna to eat in the wilderness..." - Deuteronomy 8:15-16

Have you noticed God's activity in your life of late? What has God been showing you?

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Full of yourself

It happens often enough that we shouldn't be too surprised when it does occur. We go through a good patch and suddenly start to feel as if we are 'bullet-proof' - we take our eyes off the Lord and soon we start to forget all that Christ has done for us. I don't believe that it is the Lord tripping us up, but I do know that he uses those moments to call us back. Our attention is then not distracted and we can listen to God again.

"make sure you don't become so full of yourself and your things that you forget God..." - Deuteronomy 8:13 (The Message)

Are we full of ourselves at the moment?

Have we taken our eyes off the Lord?

“A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you.” ― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

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Definition of the Soul

"No one can give a definition of the soul. But we know what it feels like. The soul is the sense of something higher than ourselves, something that stirs in us thoughts, hopes, aspirations which go out to the world of goodness, truth, and beauty. The soul is a burning desire to breathe in this world of light and never to lose it - to remain children of the light." - 'Reverence For Life', 1933.

In answering this really complex issue of the soul, I think that Albert Schweitzer gives us a great starting point. It is our soul that connects with the heart of God and inspires us to remain as Children of God. None us of knows that the soul actually looks like, but we know it is there.

Deuteronomy 4:29 - But if from there you seek the Lord your God, you will find him if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul.

What are your thoughts on the Soul? How have you been able to understand it?

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Nearer to God

“I am as sure as I live that nothing is so near to me as God. God is nearer to me than I am to myself; my existence depends on the nearness and the presence of God.” - Meister Eckhart

Deuteronomy 5:27 - Go near and listen to all that the Lord our God says. Then tell us whatever the Lord our God tells you. We will listen and obey.”

Psalm 73:28 - But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.

How do you experience the 'nearness' of God?

Living in Grace

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God is not making it too difficult

"Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach. It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, “Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?” Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, “Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?” No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it." - Deuteronomy 30:11-14

Sometimes we may think that God is playing a game with us and that somehow we are always on the back foot. However, today's reading reminds me that God is not asking us something that is too difficult for us. God wants us to "succeed" in walking with Him and the Word is given to us as a source of guidance and Life.

Do you feel that God makes it hard for you to follow him?

I am writing this on Ascension Day and one of the truths of this special occasion reminds me that Jesus Christ is praying for us all the time. That doesn't give me the impression that God wants me to fail.

Living in grace

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Beginning again

"At that same time, I begged God: “God, my Master, you let me in on the beginnings, you let me see your greatness, you let me see your might—what god in Heaven or Earth can do anything like what you’ve done! Please, let me in also on the endings, let me cross the river and see the good land over the Jordan, the lush hills, the Lebanon mountains.” - Deuteronomy 3:23-25

As we come to the end of another month, I find the transition from the 28th February to the 1st March very pertinent. There is something symbolic in the re-setting of the days of the month back down to 1. 

In a simple way it reminds me that God allows me the chance to reset, to start over again. Lent is one of those seasons where we set time aside to re-evaluate our spiritual lives and what we need to relinquish to the Lord.

As the new month begins I pray that the Lord may guide you into a new season of hope, joy and peace.

"Holiness does not consist in not making mistakes or never sinning. Holiness grows with capacity for conversion, repentance, willingness to begin again, and above all with the capacity for reconciliation and forgiveness." - Pope Benedict XVI

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You are Enough

 

 

In her incredible book One Thousand Gifts Ann Voskamp wrestles with her life and whether she is ever going to feel content with herself. In one chapter she writes: "Would I ever be enough, find enough, do enough?" Her question is profound and one that many of us may have asked ourselves.

Can I take a moment to remind all of us that in God's eyes we are enough! God loved every one of us to the ultimate extreme - He gave Jesus for us - surely that is LOVE in action? If you need to read it with your own eyes then start with these two verses today:

Deuteronomy 23:5 - However, the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam but turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the Lord your God loves you.

 

John 16:27 - No, the Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.

 

Living in Grace

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Not beyond our reach

Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach. ¹² It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, “Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?” ¹³ Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, “Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?” ¹⁴ No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it." - Deuteronomy 30:11-14

Often we assume that the things of God are way beyond the reach of us mere mortals, but according to the words of Deuteronomy they are not! In fact, it seems that what God requires of us has been made all the easier through the work of the Holy Spirit. As I read through these words again, I am reminded not to make my faith so complicated. It can be as simple as it is profound.

Friends, let us not believe that God has hidden his treasures so far from us - they are nearer to us than we think.

Living in Grace
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Bad Chapter?

As a writer you realise that sometimes you have a lot of creative energy and you feel that you have written a very good chapter in a book. However, there are days where trying to produce another chapter takes everything from you and you honestly feel that the particular chapter is not good at all. The lesson in this is that one must just keep on writing, because things will turn around again. As the following quote suggests, life doesn't depend on just one chapter.

"Life has many different chapters; one bad chapter doesn't mean it's the end of the book." (Unknown)

Of course, the Bible teaches us the same thing. There are numerous examples of people who had 'bad chapters' in their lives, but through God's grace, managed to finish the rest of the book on a brilliant note.

Deuteronomy 8:16 - "...so that in the end it might go well with you."

Thought: Finish the bad chapter and turn the page to begin writing an amazing new chapter.

Living in Grace
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Treasured Possession

Gifts, presents, treasurers - these are all synonymous with Christmas. Even though some people choose not to remember Jesus during this season, it is undeniable that the giving of gifts originates from the 'gift of the Christ child.'  God gave of his very best and so, in turn, we also give to others. 

In this lovely verse from Malachi 3:17, we see how God speaks about as being his Treasured Possession. We are loved so much by God, that he sees us as TREASURE! What a delightful thing to reflect on this Advent season.

“On the day when I act,” says the Lord Almighty, “they will be my treasured possession. I will spare them, just as a father has compassion and spares his son who serves him. ¹⁸ And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.^"
 
There are a few other passages in the Bible that convey the same message. Here is one of those:
^"For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession." - Deuteronomy 7:6 

Have a blessed day,
Living in Grace
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The measure of courage

"Speed is measured in seconds. 
Time is measured in days,
but courage can't be measured!" - unknown

I think this quote is a very interesting take on courage, because how do we measure something like courage? We don't have a unit of measurement to help us, but in some way we ARE able to recognise courage when we see it.

Think about it for a moment - what do you recognise as being courageous?

"So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you.” - Deuteronomy 31:6

Living in Grace
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Howling wind

At the moment I am listening to the wind howling outside my office window and it conjures up all kinds of thoughts, most of which make me imagine myself hiking through Antarctica (although I have never been close to the place). It is funny how a sound can spark off some random thoughts in our minds. On a related note, I checked to see if there were any scriptures that related to the 'howling wind' and this is the closest one.

“For the people of Israel belong to the Lord;
    Jacob is his special possession.
¹⁰ He found them in a desert land,
    in an empty, howling wasteland.
He surrounded them and watched over them;
    he guarded them as he would guard his own eyes.
¹¹ Like an eagle that rouses her chicks
    and hovers over her young,
so he spread his wings to take them up
    and carried them safely on his pinions." - Deuteronomy 32:9-11

Even though we may find ourselves in a 'howling' wasteland, God still watches over us and he still comes to find us. Rest assured in that amazing promise.

Living in Grace

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