A sunrise and a limp

"Jacob named the place Peniel (which means “face of God”), for he said, “I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been spared.” 31 The sun was rising as Jacob left Peniel, and he was limping because of the injury to his hip." - Genesis 32:30-31

The story of Jacob's wrestling match with the angel, ends with these few final verses. I found such comfort in the picture of Jacob leaving Peniel while the sun rose for the start of a new day. It speaks to me of new beginnings, and the end of the anguish of the night. His limp also speaks to me of the scars we carry with us - they teach us and form us, but they don't stop us walking in the ways of God.

Thought: When you walk with Christ, what scars do you carry that speak of your testimony?

Living in grace

D3LM3

Lifting me out of the mess

When I hear testimonies of how God has been real in the lives of ordinary people I am greatly encouraged. Sometimes these miracles may seem small to us, but they speak of God's activity in our real-life-issues. They remind me that God does notice us and that God does care for us.

The Psalms are another place that speak of these miracles. The recount stories of how God has shown up for his people. May we never forget this.

¹ I waited patiently for the Lord to help me,
    and he turned to me and heard my cry.
² He lifted me out of the pit of despair,
    out of the mud and the mire.
He set my feet on solid ground
    and steadied me as I walked along.
³ He has given me a new song to sing,
    a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see what he has done and be amazed.
    They will put their trust in the Lord. (Psalm 40)

Prayer: "Dear God, help us to remember how you have guided your people in the past and to trust that you can still lift us out of the mud and mire. Amen."

Living in Grace

D3LM3

Practice what you preach

There are countless examples of people who have preached a good life but have not actually followed through with their words. Putting faith into practice, is a sure way of showing others the authenticity of being a follower of Christ. 

In his final charge to Timothy, Paul reveals how his life is a testimony to his words. 

"Now you have observed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness, my persecutions, and my suffering the things that happened to me in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra. What persecutions I endured! Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them." - 2 Timothy 3:10-11

Thought: How closely do we live up to the words we preach?

Living in Grace

D3LM3

The best of God

                                                            

I was truly surprised by the story of Arthur Blessit, who has been carrying a Cross around the world for 53 years. It is a remarkable account of how one man decided to dedicate his entire life to glorify Jesus and to spread the Good News where ever he goes. At one point in his testimony Arthur shares these words:

·      “At the cross the worst of man meets the best of God.”

     This reminds me of the words of Paul in Ephesians 1:7 where he writes: "In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace."       

    As we contemplate the cross of Christ this week let us remember that the worst of our sins have been covered by the blood of Jesus and we have been given a new hope.

    Living in Grace

    D3LM3

 

Not easy, but worth it!

 

Listening to many wonderful testimonies in Church today, I was reminded that many of our stories are born in pain. Almost every person testified how through their pain they came to experience God's love and compassion. It almost sounds ridiculous, but this is what we have experienced. Left with a choice of giving up on God and turning back from him, people shared of how they choose to see God's hand at work in their lives. I suppose our stories of the Christian faith could be summed up like this:

"Following God is NOT easy, but it is still WORTH it."

Don't let your present difficulty prevent God from revealing his mercy to you.

Living in Grace
D3LM3

Focused with reason

When Paul went out to share the Gospel he was incredibly focused. He knew what he wanted, more than anything, was to tell people about the LOVE of Jesus. This moved him to enter into all kinds of places and to mix with a range of non-religious people - his sole purpose in doing this was to bring Jesus to them. However, he never compromised his commitment to Christ and always remain loyal to the Cross.

"I didn’t take on their way of life. I kept my bearings in Christ—but I entered their world and tried to experience things from their point of view. I’ve become just about every sort of servant there is in my attempts to lead those I meet into a God-saved life. I did all this because of the Message. I didn’t just want to talk about it; I wanted to be in on it!" - 1 Corinthians 9 (Message)

God is calling us to enter into the world of "the other", in order that we might bring HOPE to them. It is no longer good enough to sit in church and to invite people into our space, we need to GO into the world and to take Jesus to others.

Living in Grace
D3LM3

Bear Gryllis on Christianity

Bear Gryllis is known for his television series, Man versus Wild (Born Survivor) and has written a number of books, detailing his hectic adventure stories (Mud, Sweat and Tears is a great read by the way). What some people don't know is that he is also a committed Christian and is often used as a spokesperson for the Alpha Course.

This is what he has to say about his faith:

"This really is the heart of what I found as a young teenager: Christ comes to make us free, to bring us life in all its fullness. He is there to forgive us where we have messed up (and who hasn’t), and to be the backbone in our being. Faith in Christ has been the great empowering presence in my life, helping me walk strong when so often I feel so weak."

May Christ be an empowering presence in your life today and always.

Living in Grace
D3LM3