Close to God's heart

David reminded the people of Israel that even though they had drifted from God, that they still had a special place in God's heart. Looking at this Psalm, we see how David expresses this to the nation:


Psalm 148: 14
"And he has raised up for his people a horn,
    the praise of all his faithful servants,
    of Israel, the people close to his heart.”

The word 'horn' in this verse could also mean, 'strong one' or 'king'. God raised up his Son, as the strong one/King that they desperately needed. 

Jesus comes to be our strong one too, no matter how far away from God we feel. This is the Good News that we long to hear. And the reason God does all of this, is because .... we are close to God's heart!

May this knowledge sink deep into our spiritual memory. There may come a time when we really need to remember this.

Live in God's grace
D3LM3

Post Christmas prayer

I found this wonderful post Christmas prayer and wanted to share it with you. It is written by Scotty Smith - I have cut it a little shorter, but I am sure you will still get the point. Enjoy reading it and I encourage you to pray it for yourself.

Father, my prayer today is for all of us, no matter what Christmas was like. For even our best days are in need of the gospel, and none of our worst days are beyond the reach of the gospel. We always have more of your grace than we’re aware of and we need more than we realize.

When the shepherds left Jesus’ manger, they were still shepherds. They still couldn’t worship at the temple; they still couldn’t give testimony in a court of law; they still were stereotyped as thieves by many in their community. A five-star inn in Bethlehem didn’t suddenly open up for Joseph and Mary the day after Jesus was born. She wasn’t spared any of the normal chaos and pain of birthing and afterbirth. Angels didn’t begin showing up as round-the-clock nurses.

Father, thank you that we don’t have to pretend about anything. Christmas isn’t a season in which we’re supposed to be transported into a super-spirituality, rising above reality. The gospel isn’t about denial but is about learning to delight in you, no matter what’s going on. We praise you that Jesus came into a real world where everything is broken, but he did come to make all things new, starting with us.

Please give each of us the special and the common grace you gave the shepherds. Let us hear and let us see more of Jesus, even if we remain “shepherds” the rest of our lives. Father, enable us to glorify and praise you in every season and situation of life. We are a people of hope, not hype, and everything you tell us in your Word will come to pass. Our past is forgiven, our present is in your hands, and our future is looking really good. This is good news for shepherds and kings alike. So very Amen we pray, in Jesus’ faithful and loving name.

God bless you
Living in Grace
D3LM3

Blessed Christmas

I read somewhere that there are nearly 6500 known languages on our planet. The most popular is Mandarin, with nearly 2 Billion people speaking the language, followed by Spanish (400 million) and then English (335 million).

Whatever language is spoken in your household this Christmas may we all know come to understand God's great message of Love.

"For God so loved the world that he gave us His son..." - John 3:16

May we all get to appreciate and comprehend God's love for humanity.

And may you have a blessed Christmas.

Living in God's grace
D3LM3

P.S. This is how you say 'Merry Christmas' in Mandarin:

圣诞节快乐

Shèngdàn jié kuàilè

Greatness

Again and again the Bible reminds us that 'greatness' in God's eyes is measured with a different scale. When the rest of the community commented that Bethlehem was not the best candidate to host the birth of a King, God showed them otherwise. And it was in His birth, that the world got to meet her Saviour - Jesus. It is amazing that a tiny, crying, wrinkly baby grew into a great man...

... and his greatness has reached the ends of the earth!

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
    though you are small among the clans of Judah,
out of you will come for me
    one who will be ruler over Israel,
whose origins are from of old,
    from ancient times.”

³ Therefore Israel will be abandoned
    until the time when she who is in labor bears a son,
and the rest of his brothers return
    to join the Israelites.

⁴ He will stand and shepherd his flock
    in the strength of the Lord,
    in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
And they will live securely, for then his greatness    will reach to the ends of the earth." - Micah 5:2-4

Have a Blessed Christmas.

Living in Grace

D3LM3

God with skin on

"The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him.  He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." - John 1: 9-14

If there ever was a verse that confirmed the old saying: "We want to comprehend a God with 'skin on'", then this is the verse.

This Advent, may you come to understand and know God in a deeper way.

Living in Grace
D3LM3

Mercy of God

In this season of Advent let us not forget that it was the 'tender mercy of God' that orchestrated the birth of Jesus. Zechariah composes a wonderful song, to celebrate the birth of John, but towards the end of the song, his words also speak of Jesus Christ:

"Because of the tender mercy of our God,
    by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven 
 to shine on those living in darkness
    and in the shadow of death,to guide our feet into the path of peace.” - Luke 1:78-79

I am grateful that Christ's light can still shine in our darkness and that Jesus can guide our feet into the path of peace. I believe we could all do with more 'light' and 'peace.'

May Christ's mercy bring joy to your heart today.

Living in Grace
D3LM3

One person inspires Hope

Can one person change a nation?
Well, in South Africa we would definitely say 'Yes!' It has been clear this past week that the Madiba Magic has not died, but it lives on. In fact, it is almost as if Nelson Mandela's death has rekindled some of the hope we held as a nation. During the last few years it seems as if we have lost our way, as a nation, but Madiba's parting gift to us is to wake us from our slumber. Our gift to him would be to live as people of hope and reconciliation.

Let me ask us another question - Can one person change a world? 
Well, it seems as if Nelson Mandela has come close to bring the entire planet to a stand-still, even if it is just for this week. He has been trending on Twitter all over the globe; written about in every newspaper in the world and is constantly being mentioned on facebook, blogs, websites and news bulletin's in every country. He has impacted our world in a major way - that is undeniable.

However, let us not forget that Madiba modelled many of his values (forgiveness, reconciliation, love, and mercy) on another man - Jesus Christ. And it is Jesus who continues to change the world, 2000 years after his birth.
Jesus inspires Hope in people, even today.
Jesus loves all people.
Jesus offers forgiveness to all who would receive him.
Jesus cares about the widows, orphans and children.

One person can indeed inspire Hope.
I thank God for Jesus.
I thank God that Madiba knew Jesus.

Living in Grace
D3LM3