Faith: Now Testimonies

Jesus lives. He said: "My Father is working until now, and I am working". Testimonies abound to the truth of these words.

 
"Therefore [Jesus] is able to save completely those who come to God through Him, because He always lives to intercede for them" (Hebrews 7:25).
 
In recent days our family have twice seen our God Jesus intervene with intensely personal and uplifting help.
 
Like people everywhere, those near to me all experience trouble and difficulty; my understanding is that every generation sees troubles. We all think that we are very up-to-date and doing things in the very best up-to-date way, yet life is not perfectly smooth.
 
Job's friend Eliphaz was clear: "Humankind is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward" (Job 5:7).
 
Jesus said: "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world" (John 16:33).
 
When we see God's hand at work in our life we are encouraged. Our faith is affirmed and we know joy and peace. We find the strength to "press on" (Philippians 3:12).
 
 
Becky's and Chris's House - January 2026
 
Our youngest, Rebecca, married Christopher, then last May Sophie was born, she is now an 8 month old delight.
 

The couple have been looking for a house for some time. This is hard here because there is a severe housing shortage, people are immigrating here faster than homes are being built. Prices have been rapidly rising. Even so, every "for sale" property is quickly snatched up.
 

Becky and Chris are "young" Christians but have been hearing Trish's and my testimonies for years. We told them about Jesus undertaking for us when we moved to the country; He answered our prayers and helped sell our city properties in a very depressed market. This enabled us to buy our beautiful country acres where so much of our family history was lived out.
• This story is in PsalmsOfJohn.com post "Our Lord Will":
https://www.psalmsofjohn.com/2010/06/our-lord-will-t3.html
 
I remember saying something like: "You may feel that you don't know Jesus well enough to ask for such a big thing as a house, but He's always known you and He loves you and put you together into a family, so pray. Pray simple prayers, ask for what you need, give detail".
 
Well, last night we received a message, their offer on a lovely house in a sweet part of the city has been accepted. It is near a primary school. Becky added: "Hallelujah! Praise the Lord". They will move in April.
 
One of our family responded: "You've done the almost impossible at the moment". So true. Thank you Jesus, who cares for us and answers prayer. Our faith is well placed in our faithful and loving God and Saviour. Amen.
 
 
An Old Man's Testimony of God's Goodness in Jesus - December 2025
 
Our time at camp down South in Busselton was especially precious this summer as it was my last camp in a tent, (though I did not know this at the time).
 
We had a few days with just Trish and I, then Becky arrived with her Chris and baby Sophie, followed by Frank and his Anlia and Jude, Hamish, Ada and Elroy. We had such great family time, lots of children, love, hugs, bush walks, fun in the sea and great food. Wonderful.
 
Jesus gave us a beautiful testimony. As we were gathering our camp gear, food, books and everything, I could see that this camp was beyond the now older me. (Last year was tough but ok, now I am notably weaker, less stable, less flexible, with less stamina).
 
But by then it was too late to say "not going"; Trish and I have so much "base camp" stuff that everyone always relies on, and they have no capacity to bring it along with their own camping and personal gear.
 
So I prayed that Jesus would undertake for me, give me strength, energy and alertness for the gathering together, loading up, travel, unloading and set-up.
 
We pressed on with the thousand-and-one tasks we have done dozens of times. The loading went so very well, Everything fitted, my Hilux truck was full, the trailer was full, even with three kayaks. We set off. 

When we were about half-way there Trish asked how I was going. My reply: "I am being carried, Jesus is carrying me along, it is Isaiah 40:31. I am not tired, I have energy, the load is perfectly balanced and I am enjoying this drive through our beautiful Western Australian countryside". Jesus’ spiritual reality was impacting our physical world (Matthew 10:7).
 
We arrived, unloaded and set up. Two old timers doing these big jobs. It went so smoothly. We had to have rests from time to time, we had brought lunch and drinks and pressed on in peace and harmony. The sun and the heat were ok, we were stretched but fine.
 
By about 4:30 we had a camp, it was not complete but was nicely livable. Then a swim in the ocean and a cool drink as the sun set in the West. A simple pre-planned dinner. Early to bed. Glorious.
 
That day we lived Isaiah 40:31 - it was answered prayer: "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint".
 
Jesus was manifestly present with us and gave us everything we needed to have a day accomplishing what was beyond us but was needed. We were at peace in the knowledge that we were in Jesus' hands for the purposes of restoration after a very big year for Trish, and for beautiful fellowship with family.
 
Praise Jesus.
 
Over the two weeks of camping I lost more than two kilograms in weight. Once we were home I needed to rest. I finished and posted "Faith: How We See" which I have been working on for a while, otherwise I tried to not do much. Our hearts are full. My "last camp" was an array of glorious moments – now poignant heart memories.
 
Meanwhile Trish is settling into being retired. This summer she does not have to plan her preparation for next school year but rather is thinking about visiting her brother in Melbourne and much more.
 
Hallelujah, our world may be in a worsening mess, but the Kingdom of God stands and is a glorious sanctuary for Jesus' people.
 
Amen.
 

And an old testimony I heard this week from my sister Dee. (Added 26th February 2026).

My Mother Wyn's Twelve Years

My mother had a heart attack. This was soon after I came to Australia and was living in a mining camp in the far Northwest. She was called Wyn, and I called her my Boffin, perhaps because she was the smartest person I knew.

Dee told me that our mother was not expected to go home from the hospital; the heart attack was caused by an unusual vascular problem that the doctors believed was beyond fixing.

She was offered Holy Communion and accepted it gladly. As she was eating the bread and drinking the wine of our Lord's Supper, Boffin felt a movement in her chest; she told Dee that "it was like a 'click', and I knew that God had put everything right". Soon she was able to leave the hospital, she later told Dee: "Jesus gave me twelve more years". 

Boffin and my father bought some acres on the Kapiti Coast, built a small house and developed a magnificent garden there. And she was able to come to Australia and spend time with Dee's family and with mine. Twelve years, thank you Jesus. She knew that it was Jesus who healed her in a way the doctors had not yet learned.

Dee tells me that my Dad got a huge lift in his faith from the truth of this healing. As I think about it, so do I, both my parents' faith was more profound than I had previously understood, hallelujah! 

Thank you Lord. Praise Jesus.

 
Favourite Bible Verses
 
When Jesus first drew me to Himself I asked for a Bible for my birthday. Trish gave me an NIV large print with a leather cover, very new at that time. This is where it opened; that day Jesus spoke to me in a way I knew was for me and have always remembered and valued. I am so grateful.
 

"Then Jesus said to his disciples: 'Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life? Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest? "Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you - you of little faith! And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well. "Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also'" (Luke 12:22-34).
 
Praise Jesus our Creator, Saviour, Sustainer, Rabbi, Lord and friend. Thank you. Amen.

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Take It By Force

"From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force" (Matthew 11:12, Jesus' words). 
 

When I was a new Christian I learned that my "force" was not enough. I knew that I was saved, that Jesus had forgiven my sins and brought me into His fold. But I was not in relationship with Him, neither did I know His Father as my father, not intimately as "Abba Father" (Galatians 4:6). I had a long time of big struggle.
 
I tried as hard as I could but I did not obtain "conviction" or "power" (1 Thessalonians 1:5), and this bothered me enormously. Parts of my life were going well, but the rest was emptiness and uncertainty. I knew people who had "got it" - they had some spiritual maturity, they were growing in Jesus, they were moving into the reality of their "adoption as children of the living God" (Ephesians 1:5) - they were "alive in Christ" (Romans 6:11) and had begun the lifelong process of "renewing their minds" (Romans 12:2).
 
I would read my Bible. I went to all the prayer meetings and conferences and learned from some truly great teachers. I loved Communion, the Lord's Supper. I was sincere. Sometimes I cried tears of joy. When people asked my denomination I would say that I was "a committed Christian", meaning that I belonged to Jesus more than to a local church or any group, and that Christianity was a main focus in my life - I wanted to be the man Jesus wanted me to be.
 
Already I knew that Christian life is a struggle. The Bible says we will receive gifts which help us; that our force alone will never win the day. (Paul, who contributed so much to the early church and to our Bibles, struggled mightily and often, he knew that he had little "force", see Acts 9:23-25, 13:50, 14:5-6, 21:11, 21:31-34).
 
John Baptist was Jesus' cousin. Even before he was born, John was filled by Holy Spirit (Luke 1:44), he "leaped for joy in Elizabeth's womb". John committed all his life to God even though he did not know when he would be called upon to do what is recorded in the Bible; he was to announce the coming of Israel's promised Messiah.
 
John lived in the desert. No supermarkets and work-wear stores for him, he ate rough and wore rough clothes. He went out there and meditated on God's word and prayed. He was committed, he became stalwart.
 
Remember, John was born 400 years after God had last spoken to Israel, His "treasured possession" (Exodus 19:5). The people followed their Jewish traditions, and "the law and the prophets" (Acts 28:23), but had received no new word from their God until John. Four hundred years - about sixteen generations. No word.
 
John must have been sure; sure and strong and courageous. He began his ministry of announcing Israel's Messiah (John 1:15). He would have had nothing but faith, truly believing that he had heard God say "go, speak now".
 
John did not know who he was to announce as Messiah until Father God had the dove come and rest on Jesus and spoke aloud from Heaven, "this is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:17). John and Jesus were just a few months different in age. Jesus lived simply as a carpenter, I am sure that John was surprised; Jesus was so ordinary, He was his cousin, a part of his extended family. But John obeyed and baptised Jesus. Jesus was, and is, the Saviour of all humankind. John had "eyes to see and ears to hear" (Acts 28:27), and was "obedient" (1 Peter 1:2). 
 

The world desperately wants all the blessings of "the Kingdom of God"; people will say "yes, I will go to Heaven when I die, I am a good person". Their desire is so strong that they will use great force to justify their claim.
 
At the same time, the human desire for security and respect is universal; I now believe that being in Jesus' (spiritual) arms is the most secure and safe place in the world. Jesus is with us "always" (Matthew 28:20), and we can always know we have value and are loved (1 John 3:1).
 
I have worked in big businesses and in government departments, almost always they are managed by those with political skills and for many managers appearances mattered more than substance - personal ambition was more important than the true mission. These ones understand "force". My response to all this is to remember that "small is beautiful", I simply seek to follow Jesus’ leading, and to keep a low profile.
 
God’s Way
 
Jesus said "I am the way, the truth, and the life" (John 14:6). When we come to Him we are given the assurance that we are forgiven our sins and set free from their burden. We are loved and can be at rest. We do not need "force". We are brought into God's family and have an eternal Saviour and Shepherd caring for us and providing strength when we have none (John 10:11; 2 Corinthians 12:9). Jesus is always the same (James 1:17). 
 
All our life we have been encouraged to dream dreams and to set goals, then to work very hard to reach them. It is no wonder then that the people of the world are forceful towards God's Kingdom and His people, they are trying to achieve a great and worthy goal in the world’s way. But God is gracious: 
 

"Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits - who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's" (Psalm 103:2-5).
 
The great, ever repeating, tragedy of the Fall, as I see it, is that Satan offered those first two humans a lesser version of what they already had. Adam and Eve were in intimate relationship with God, they worked with Him during the day, caring for the "vast array" of the Creation, and in the evening they would "walk and talk together", the three of them, "in the garden". They would have known what pleased God, thus they knew fully what was "good" and what was "evil", (that is, everything that does not please God).
 
God offers us Adam’s and Eve’s original potential today, not as Satan offered, by separating our self from God, but by joining with Jesus. In Him our conscience can discern right and wrong and be at peace. In Jesus we are being made whole (Colossians 2:9-11), as only Jesus can bring healing, and the world cannot even counterfeit (1 John 2:27).
 
We can see this same thought expressed when Jesus was asked about His ministry, He gave a Kingdom answer about the people blessed by His mission: "'Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor" (Luke 7:22). A message of hope for all. Good news. This is the gospel of Jesus Christ! Here we see God's love, compassion and power; but not human "force".
 
"The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed. The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love" (Psalm 103:6,8). We Christians are to participate in Jesus’ works (Ephesians 2:10).
 
None of this is available to those who seek to "take it by force" (Matthew 11:12), their heart is wrong, their motive is wrong, their objective is wrong, and they will depend on them-self. We know that the way for us to "run the race" (1 Corinthians 9:24), is to "abide in the vine" (John 15:5), fully depending on Jesus as "shepherd" and "Lord" (John 10:11), and to use the "spiritual gifts" He has given us by His Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:7).
 
No other faith group has these assurances, (least of all the humanists, possibly the most popular "faith" in the West in our time). Some gods say "maybe; if you follow all my rules and practices and sacrifices, I may help you if it pleases me". Such faith is based on works, which is simply religion and is uncertain. Only Jesus’ followers are ever sure of their salvation and their God.
 
Jesus was offended by religion and religious practice. Our God seeks relationship with His people, Spirit to spirit, such close relationship that we are brought into His family. Jesus' Father becomes our Father, we are made sons, in fullness, "sons and daughters of the living God" (2 Corinthians 6:18). (In Bible language, we are all "sons" because we are brought fully into Jesus' inheritance, just like a first born son in Bible times).
 
At the Creation, Elohim God created a glorious place full of truly wondrous and beautiful things; today we call this "the Universe", or "our ecosystem". Then God created humankind, "man" and "woman", in His own image and likeness, and commanded that they, (now we), should rule over the world and care for it in all its complexity (Genesis 1:26-28). Surely an awesome undertaking and responsibility, worthy of our Lord Jesus.
 
Nevertheless, we seem able to get ourselves into trouble. We do wrong and feel guilt and shame. We are hurt and feel betrayal or pain. All our "force" cannot overcome these feelings. We need God's "benefits", His "free gift"; for those who belong to Jesus, who have faith in the one who died and rose for all of humanity (Romans 5:15-16, 6:23; John 8:36).
 

Hallelujah! Jesus brought the New Covenant and has now included us in it; "the Kingdom of God has come near" (Luke 10:9). We are to be God's "ambassadors" (2 Corinthians 5:20) and "instruments" (2 Timothy 2:21) on the earth. We are given spiritual gifts (1 Corinthians 12:1-11 and more), so that, in our human frailty, and in the authority Jesus has given us, we can exercise the same kinds of ministry we see from Jesus in all four of the Gospels, and throughout the New Testament in our Bible (Matthew 10:8). God's power, in Jesus, by Holy Spirit; not our "force".

We Are Forgiven Our Sins
 
Forgiveness is a major theme of both the Old and the New Testaments of the Bible, and is a key element in the gospel of our Saviour, Jesus Christ, who is Himself God and at the same time, the human Son of God (a mystery). He gave His sinless and perfect life to pay the price so that we can be forgiven and set free, He empowers us to forgive.
 
The Lord's Prayer (Luke 11:2-4; Matthew 6:9-15) includes us asking our Father to "forgive us our sins" followed by God's desire for us that "we also forgive everyone who sins against us"; our forgiveness is bound together with our forgiving.
 
All sin is wrongdoing against God, it all hurts Him, so it is costly for Him to forgive, He paid with the life of His only Son (John 3:16). Yet our Father God is always ready to forgive us when we repent and acknowledge Jesus as our Saviour. This is God's grace towards us at its most profound (Ephesians 2:8).
 
We are free to live the life He planned for us from the beginning. (See Galatians 5:1, John 10:10, and 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). We can see why God wants to forgive us, so that there will be no barrier between us, no impediment to the flow of love from Him to us, each one, and from us to Him. Such a blessing. 
 

When we remember past hurts from other people they can be as sharply painful as when they were new. (Often, physical pain is not so long remembered). Our desire to not forgive the one who hurt us is understandable, but, truth is, unforgiveness hurts us more and more as time passes. Unforgiveness becomes bitterness, and bitterness is a slow poison. (Hebrews 12:15) "See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many".
 
We are then able to see, hear and obey: "Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus" (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).
 
We are told "Cast all your cares on him because he cares for you" (1 Peter 5:7), Jesus wants us to "wait on Him" (Psalm 27:14). We are not alone, His strength will be there for us when we need it, our "force" will never be enough.
 
The world may be a scary and dangerous place, but I can have peace and hope, because I am a forgiven child of the living God, and His Son Jesus is my big brother! Hallelujah.
 
Praise Jesus. Amen.
 
Favourite Bible Verses
 
"It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life" (John 6:63).
 
"That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong" (2 Corinthians 12:10).
 
"Then Jesus said, 'Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?'" (John 11:40).
 
"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me" (Galatians 2:20).
 
"For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form,  and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority. In him you were also circumcised with a circumcision not performed by human hands. Your whole self ruled by the flesh was put off when you were circumcised by Christ" (Colossians 2:9-11).

Thank you Jesus my Saviour, Teacher, Lord and friend. Amen.

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Bless us all. Amen.

Constant Reminders

Constant Reminders - 154
 
An old wedding anniversary card, from Trish to me, was in some papers I was sorting through. I paused to read it - then again - what a lift to my spirits! Her love and memories of our shared life expressed so simply, so sincerely - Such a lovely surprise to be reminded like that. 

These days I am aware that our Abba Father God gives us constant reminders of His presence in, and impact on, our lives, and even on the whole world, and always with love. These reminders make such a difference when we are surrounded by difficulties and things-beyond-understanding, and also by many frightened people.
 
In the Old Testament God tells His story about the early days of humankind, and how He chose Israel for Himself, a tiny and seemingly insignificant country. Israel's early fathers were Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Through these three God did many great exploits. Scripture is full of reminders of these patriarchs and events, and even today we still speak of them. Some friends were talking recently, we all shared our delight as together we recounted adventures from Ezekiel, Numbers, Chronicles and other Bible books we, (me certainly), do not often look at .. such exploits, such rescues, such Sovereign love and purpose from our Heavenly Father!
 
The telling about God's love continues right through the New Testament, with the coming of Jesus and Him gathering the first twelve of His people, (who would become more than a billion by our time). Then Jesus' unjust death on the Cross, His so-unexpected-and-amazing resurrection and then a wonderful time of spiritual growth with (almost) all of those twelve, then His ascension to be with Our Father in heaven. From all this came Pentecost and the Christian Church. Holy Spirit is poured out and fills God's people (Acts 4:31, 10:45). This continues even until today. We Christians have been brought into God's family as His sons and daughters.
 
We remind each other of all this great history, even as we share new "testimonies" (Luke 21:13; Acts 14:17; 1 Corinthians 1:6 4-9; Revelation 12:11), so that we can "encourage one another" (1 Thessalonians 5:11) to "persevere" (Ephesians 6:18), and "press on" (Philippians 3:12) in our "walk" (John 12:35; Ephesians 2:10) with Jesus. These are constant reminders for us.
 
Trouble abounds. Several in our family have recently recovered from Covid-19; the pandemic continues. Frankie's and Anlia's Ada was born during our first big lockdown and she is now two years old. It has been a long time. 

All over the world many are experiencing great fear. We are told that that mental health issues and suicides are at crisis levels in the Western countries. Sometimes I think that it is only we Christians who have any real hope today (Romans 5:3-5).
 
And we all know others who have terrible and painful troubles, we are reminded that trouble is one of life's certainties:
 
"Yet man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward" (Job 5:7).
 
"Our days may come to seventy years, or eighty, if our strength endures; yet the best of them are but trouble and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away" (Psalm 90:10).
 
"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world" (John 16:33).
 
Most troubles come from people's sin, or are part of the legacy of the Fall when Adam and Eve sinned and chose to be independent from God, the same God who created them, gave them a fabulous place to live and fellowshipped with them in the “cool of the evening”. Adam and Eve chose to pursue their own destiny and seek their own glory. They were not only the first humans, they were also the first humanists. Since that day trouble abounds.
 
Other times our troubles come from God out of His love and concern for us; from His desire that we follow His way, and not the way of the Fall. One of the Bible's great calls to prayer, 2 Chronicles 7:14, is preceded by God telling us that our lawlessness will incur His just response .. God Himself will send us trouble to remind and encourage us to repent, to turn away from our sin, our willfulness, our disobedience and foolishness: (2 Chronicles 7:13) "When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command the locust to devour the land, or send pestilence among my people .." (We note that God's call to us to pray comes after we repent and unite as one people under Him, the God of all Creation).
 

So we look to Jesus who constantly reminds us: through Scripture, through personal testimony, through song, and through the wonders and the beauty of His creation, that He is here .. and that He has indeed "overcome the world" (John 16:33); we only need "eyes to see" and "ears to hear", and the heart to follow (Acts 28:27; Matthew 6:21).
 
In Scripture we are often reminded of the Cross of Calvary and how Jesus has paid the price for all our sin, our wrongdoing, our meanness. All. This made available to us Jesus' righteousness (1 Corinthians 1:30), even our full inheritance in Christ: "For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through His blood, shed on the cross" (Colossians 1:19-20).
 
This cleansing, complete and universal among Christians, makes room in our hearts for love to flow into us, and out from us to our brothers and sisters in Jesus, and to our "neighbours", (Matthew 19:19), everywhere in the world: "And hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.  You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly" (Romans 5:5-6).
 
These constant reminders are the substance of God's promise in Jesus: "and, lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:20). Jesus is always with us.
 
When trouble comes, we remember that we are "in the boat" with Jesus and are able to see beyond "the storm" (Luke 8:22-25), to choose "faith" (Hebrews 11:1) and "fix our eyes on Jesus" (2 Corinthians 4:18).  
 

Our "eyes to see" affirm that Jesus is keeping our spirit safe and giving us His assurance that we are loved and have a glorious future. This is the same Jesus, the cause, the means, the purpose and the object of everything (Colossians 1:16).
 
"And because of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption" (1 Corinthians 1:30).
 
Favourite Bible Verses
 
"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?" (Romans 8:35).
 
"And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:7).
 
".. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:20).
 
Amen.
 

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Praise Jesus. Amen

Is God Love?

Is God ?

Is God Love ?

How Do We Know That God Is ?

Some people say that because of all the trouble and pain in the world, they cannot believe that God exists, or if there is a god, that he, she, or it, must certainly not be a loving and benign God who is for all of humanity. (Happily, we have Jesus and know truth). 

Others say that science has never found any evidence for any kind of spiritual reality, and certainly none for an all-seeing, all-knowing and loving God who is creator of the entire Universe, and personally of you, and of me. (We know that they have not seen correctly).

Many people seem to be upset that others do believe in a Creator God who is loving and good, who designed and created a very beautiful and complete world for us, who loves us always and sacrificially, and wants us to be with Him and be in His family, now and forever.

These ones try to separate us from our beliefs and work hard to get all discussion of "God" and "Jesus", and especially prayer, excluded from the public arena and kept right away from children and schools, as though it were dangerous and likely to damage the hearers.

So sad. All the arguments put forward by atheists and agnostics are deeply flawed, their foundations are sand, at best, not rock as they want us to believe. Their arguments all ignore facts, (truths), which are plain for everyone to see, and they all contain contradictions; often their arguments depend on two opposite facts being true simultaneously ..

How Do We Know That God Is?

Apart from the Bible telling us, how can we be sure that any god exists, and especially our God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, who created and sustains the Universe and all that is in it including you and me?

Two quick answers. Firstly, the very fact that we ask about love and joy and pain and trouble tells us that we recognise that there is a standard of right and wrong, of justice and injustice, that life has value and meaning and that we are all here for a purpose.

Some would argue that the Universe and all that is in it came out of nothing for no reason, that it was an accident and all that has happened since, the formation of the stars, galaxies, planets and life are all a vast series of accidents, and meaningless.

When we ask "is there a God?" or "does God exist?" Or even, "is God?" We are also asking "are our universal human values foolish and worthless?" And "is there a definitive 'right' and 'wrong'? Is there a plumbline, a standard or measure?" And this question inevitably leads to "who, where, why or what is that standard setter, who created and holds the plumbline?"

There is no place for purpose or value or cruelty or disaster or injustice in a dog-eat-dog survival-of-the-fittest world of accidental and meaningless existence; that would be illogical, irrational.

Don't we all recognise that life is precious, not meaningless and worthless? That each one of us has value, and it is right that we should all be able to have hope? When we are sick or injured, even very badly, why do we strive so hard to stay alive?

So I say, "yes, God is, He is a caring God who not only created everything in general, He also created with a plan so detailed that it includes you and me, and our lives from minute to minute and day to day".

"Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God.  Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows" (Luke 12:6-7, Jesus' words).

Secondly, we can know God in His Son, Jesus, who became human "and dwelt among us" (John 1:14). No serious scholar of ancient history doubts that Jesus did live when the Bible says, there were a great many who heard His teaching and saw the miracles He performed, and more than 500 who saw Him after He rose from the dead after being crucified.

But more than that, we can know Jesus in person, and through Him, also know our Heavenly Father and Holy Spirit. Our God is three Persons, and by Holy Spirit we can, and do, know them in our spirit. The spiritual world is real. Indeed it is greater than the physical. God already was, then the Universe was created on His breath as He spoke. But one day it "will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment" (Isaiah 51:6), later there will be "a new heaven and a new earth" (Revelation 21:1). Our spirits will continue on, in intimate relationship with God, regardless of what happens in the physical! We are "fearfully and wonderfully made" (Psalm 139:14).

Jesus brought the Gospel message to humanity. By fully believing in Jesus and repenting of our sins, (our rebellion, disobedience and wickedness), we can be redeemed from our sinners' destiny, bought back, saved eternally; we become “born again”, “a new creation” and a full child of Father God, just as Jesus is His Son (John 3:7, John 3:16, 2 Corinthians 5:17).

"But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins. And in him is no sin" (1 John 3:5).

"Beyond all question, the mystery from which true godliness springs is great: He appeared in the flesh, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory" (1 Timothy 3:16).

Planet Earth exists in just the right place in the Universe to be oxygen rich, warm and watery and safe for us. It appears that, statistically, it is most unlikely there is another planet with so many perfect qualities.

Life is here on our planet. Apart from the Bible, I see still no coherent or reasonable explanation for the existence of life, or where it came from, or how .. But when we think about life we see beauty, variety, symbiosis and synchronicity, sufficiency, family and love .. and much more .. somehow in our inner being we know that it all has meaning.

Beauty: As I write this I am by the sea, the sun is shining across the bay, school children and their teachers and helper-parents are walking happily on the beach, back to their camp with pockets full of seashells. Beautiful! If all the world and life were meaningless this would not fill my heart with joy as it does. Logic says "could not". Praise our Creator God!

Variety: When I was growing up our family had typical New Zealand food which was much like English food and it was great! Now in Australia Trish and I have three or four nationality's food each week. I have invented several dishes which our family enjoy, "Dad's Pesto" is a favourite and is based on Italian. Such variety! God doesn't make two snow flakes alike, let alone two people .. we are each unique, there will never be another quite like you or me! 

Variety is everywhere, different people groups look and sound different, eat differently and celebrate differently. But, largely, we all have very similar value systems and we all form up into families regardless of our nationality, ethnicity, religion or location. I believe God made us like this. We are "in the image and likeness" of God (Genesis 1:26) who is the first family (Genesis 1:1-2), we were created to enjoy the bounty the earth produces (Genesis 1:29, Acts 11:5-9). And to be in relationship with our Maker (1 John 3:1).

And the flowers! The sunsets! The singing! The laughter!

Synchronicity and Symbiosis: There are many thousands of different kinds of animal and bird, sea creature, reptile, insect, lichen, bacteria and virus, and millions of species of all these kinds. Yet they all continue to exist and co-exist, season after season and have done for thousands of years. There is no fossil record, (or any other kind of record), of any more complex creature developing (evolving) from a less complex one .. so where did these millions of species come from? How is it that the synchronicity and symbiosis in the world enables every life form to live and feed and have babies, yet not to so dominate that all other life is extinguished (eaten) as would ultimately be inevitable under the "survival of the fittest" model? We co-exist rather than battle it out to the finish; just check out the life around an African water hole! 

Some creatures travel across continents and oceans between their breeding grounds and their summer feeding grounds. Nobody knows how they navigate or how the next generation knows where and when to travel, but their species still survives, and many flourish, regardless the changes we see in the world.

Besides, prominent educators (like Mark Hauser) conclude that there is a quantum gap between human intelligence and that of any other species, far beyond any evolution understanding .. we could not have evolved - the intelligence gap is too great. This leads to the conclusion that it is a Designer and Maker who created and now sustains everything. Synchronicity and Symbiosis; thank you Jesus! 

Sufficiency: We see the horrible situations caused by wars, natural disasters and international, national and business leaders' greed and mismanagement, yet surprisingly almost all the millions of species and billions of people have water every day, enough to eat and some shelter, and loved ones and family. Many of the most intransigent atheists admit that there must be a benign intelligence behind all this.

Family: What can I say? Ants, lions, whales and people of every nationality and culture live in families, always have and always will. It is natural, and I believe, designed in by our lovely God, from the beginning. Father, Son and Holy Spirit are eternal, and eternally the first family. Many studies show that the greatest blessing a child can receive is to grow up in a family with a mother and a father. And I have learned, and find much agreement, that the greatest gift a father can give his children is to love their mother ..

Love: Babies and children who do not receive love grow into broken people without empathy or compassion. Apart from such tragedies, love is everywhere, even in the hearts and homes of the most avid atheist. Yet it is nowhere in science. "God is love" (1 John 4:16), love is a great gift from Him to us.

More: My spirit assures me that the spiritual world is real and that its order is assured by an intelligent, creative and benign being who loves and is compassionate. How can I know this? All I can tell you is that my "knower" knows. This is not scientific and I do not know if these thoughts are supported by psychology. Nevertheless, I know.

A long time ago Trish and I knew a Catholic priest who liked to understand things and be able to explain them. He sometimes found shortcomings with the English language and would use his own words. He said we all have a "knower", meaning that something inside us just "knows" some things even though they are hard to explain .. and we are ultimately proved right! He also used to say that we all could recognise when things were in "balance" (meaning that they were no longer void or in chaos). I believe that he was onto some rich truths and have often spoken these words, and my hearers have understood completely what I was saying! Praise Jesus for our hidden depths (Psalm 139:13-17).

There is so much that we know that science has no coherent or believable explanation for, has no accounting for. "Accounting" is an exact craft, if you have something, you can include it, otherwise you must not include it. Many "scientific" statements include things which have never been proven, they have hypotheses, informed guesses, but not empirical evidence, therefore they do not have them. Or they include previously proposed "proofs" which were thoroughly refuted, some, decades ago. Many high school and university texts are littered with such un-truths.

Every person is acquainted with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, and many more qualities. I can also think of hope, gratitude, empathy, sympathy, morality, loyalty, generosity, pathos, justice and compassion, (Jesus is famous for showing compassion). Outside of God's Word I cannot see any beginning or cause or value for any of these .. But we all know that they do exist and are very precious, and are familiar to every person and in every culture in the world.

People (and other creatures) bond and communicate in non-tangible ways. Trish and I have twins, Peter and Rebecca, our fifth and sixth children. Anyone who has twins in their family can tell many stories about their ability to communicate remotely and without words. Our family was inducted into a "twins study" so we got to hear lots of lovely "twin" stories.

Here is one I remember: One twin of an identical pair of girls went to live overseas. These twins were so alike that they did everything together: they wore the same clothes, played the same sports and music, studied the same subjects. One day, after they had been apart for some time, the overseas twin wrote to her sister and sent a picture from a magazine. The letter said that she had seen the hairstyle and cut out the picture, taken it to her hairdresser "last Thursday" and now had the new style and liked it very much. To all our amazement she received a reply from her twin saying that she had done the exact same thing on the exact same day!

A flock of birds or a school of fish will all change direction at the same time .. Amazing! Wonderful!

Praise Jesus for His unfathomable ways. We communicate without knowing how (Romans 11:33).

Pain, Horror And Disaster In The World

When people ask, "how can there be a loving, all-powerful God with all the trouble and pain in the world?" This is called a theodicy; ("theodicy" comes from "God" + "justice").

Answering this question is difficult, we are attempting to explain the coexistence of God and Evil. Thankfully there are answers, and I am satisfied with them. This is a very big subject and better minds than mine have been studying it for centuries. Here are some of my thoughts and conclusions.

When God created the Universe and Earth and humanity I believe that things were perfect. Adam and Eve were family, and in close, loving and obedient relationship with God. Their spiritual and social needs were met, the creation was being cared for and provided every material thing they needed. They knew love, were satisfied and they were safe.

"Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame" (Genesis 2:25).

Then these first humans sinned, they ate of the forbidden fruit even though they had been told, "You will surely die". The serpent was completely out of order when it spoke to Eve who, with Adam, had dominion over all the creation (Genesis 1:26) including the serpent. 

Adam and Eve knew that they were created in the "image and likeness" of God (Genesis 1:26), so they already were fully in possession of what the serpent was offering them; that they would "be like God" (Genesis 3:5). Even so, Eve did listen, and Adam and Eve ate the fruit. Sin, pain, trouble and death entered the world.

[God said] "And I will put enmity between you [serpent] and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel". To the woman he said, "I will make your pains in childbearing very severe; with painful labor you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you".  To Adam he said, "Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, 'You must not eat from it,' cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life.  It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field.  By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return" (Genesis 3:15-19).

Not all snakes are poisonous, but we have a universal fear of snakes, right? Even many animals fear them. Scripture tells us why.

Childbirth was made difficult, even painful, (all parents know this to be true), and tragically, some families have broken and ill-formed babies. Babies and mothers die in childbirth and this deeply affects us all.

The Earth is cursed, hence earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, volcanoes, bushfires (many of which start from lightning and others by malicious people). They all cause pain and trouble.

These things come from sin. So do wars and rebellions, robbery and murder, even being mean to people and speeding in our car.

Adam and Eve chose to sin. People, us, we choose to sin. Sin is now in the world. Jesus defeated sin, and death, when He died on the Cross and then rose from the dead, but the complete application of His victory will not manifest until He comes again. Meanwhile He is with us, helping, and interceding for us, constantly (Matthew 28:20, Romans 8:34).

".. But [Christ] has appeared once for all at the culmination of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself" (Hebrews 9:26).

".. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil" (1 John 3:8).

God knows that there is suffering. Like everything else He can make good come from it (Romans 8:28). My sufferings are small compared with those of many others, but they help me see God more clearly as a bright light and a source of love and hope, I empathise with others more deeply and I truly value what Jesus has given me in my salvation and in my life with Him. Good from pain.

"For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers,  nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:38-39). 

Is God Love?

I believe that God exists and loves us. He has an infinite number of ways of giving and showing His love.

I met a pilot who gave this testimony. He was co-pilot on a Lear Jet carrying mail. As they drew near to their intended destination they were told that the airport was too cloud-covered for landings, they were given an alternative airport. As they drew near to the second airport they received a similar warning and another alternative airport. So they changed direction again; time was passing and they had flown far, fuel was getting low. As they made contact with the third airport they were given the same message again. Their fuel was so low that they could fly nowhere else, my friend and his captain had no option but to attempt a landing with whatever navigational aids and visibility were available. Possibly they would crash but they knew to follow their years of training and flight experience. Praise Jesus; as they descended and entered the landing approach the clouds parted and they had enough visibility to land, only the runway was visible. Their fuel gauges had been showing empty for some minutes.

Months later in a different state, my friend recounted this adventure, a woman who was unknown to the pilot asked when this frightening event had occurred; he was able to tell her. "Well", she responded, "I was praying with a group on that afternoon, someone interrupted the meeting to say that Jesus had given her a picture of an airplane which was lost in the clouds up towards Canada somewhere, it was running out of fuel and bound to crash. She told us that the vision was not very likely to be true because the plane was a jet, but it was a small plane so could not be a jet - we all prayed anyway". The date and time-of-day were the same; Lear Jets are small airplanes with jet engines, the vision may have seemed contradictory, but was indeed accurate. God showed the women the trouble and heard their prayer. Jesus stretched the fuel to last the extra few minutes and made a hole in the clouds in just the right place and at just the right time. I have hugged that co-pilot; this is a true story! 

Praise the Lord, how He speaks to us and uses our prayers. Those atheists and agnostics cannot tell true stories like this .. I do so enjoy Christian testimonies, they point directly to God and His love.

Here is a new story of mine. It is late winter here and still quite cold. I like to lie in bed after I wake up, in the warm for a little longer. A few days ago all I had for this post was its title: "Is God Love?" I was awake, enjoying the cozy warmth and thinking about my day when Jesus interrupted. "Come on John", He said, "get up, I have something for you, get ready to type!" So I did, as fast as I could .. As soon as my laptop was running He started to speak, He gave me the first few paragraphs of this piece. He then told me to hurry along on another piece I was already writing, so that I could progress with this one. This may sound as though Jesus is bossy, but I know He loves me very much and would never be bossy to me, it's just His way of saying "follow me" (John 21:19) in a way that I will understand!

I wrote that yesterday .. then this morning Jesus said to me, "get up now, I have some typing for you, something you forgot to add yesterday". So I did get up and He carefully dictated what I had not thought of .. Grace and love in action. Thank you my loving Lord!

Love is everywhere. What would novelists, journalists, songwriters and scriptwriters have to write about if it were not? Our Bible, God's Word, is full of love. I am satisfied that only our lovely God in Heaven has a sound explanation for love, and He gives it to us in love.

God is love.

Praise Jesus.

Amen.

Favourite Scriptures

"The fruit of the [Holy] Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law" (Galatians 5:22-23).

"But when the kindness and love of God our Saviour appeared,  he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit,  whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Saviour,  so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life" (Titus 3:4-7).

"Lift up your eyes to the heavens, look at the earth beneath; the heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment and its inhabitants die like flies. But my salvation will last forever, my righteousness will never fail" (Isaiah 51:6).

"But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells" (2 Peter 3:13).

"The Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Head of God's creation, says these things .." (Revelation 3:14).

Amen.

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Praise Jesus.

Jehovah Jireh

Our Provider

Lots of people now seem to be thinking about survival. Borders are being closed again and some cities are locked down for the second time, others are seeing new Covid-19 clusters. We have all been fighting this virus for months and months. The media are still spreading fear and distrust ..

So I have been asking my friend Jesus (John 15:15) what to think about all this, and more particularly, what should I, and my wife Trish, be doing to prepare for whatever unknowns may be thrown at us in these most uncertain times.

When our children were younger Trish and I had a hundred acre hobby farm three hours South from here. It was beautiful hilly land with a small river, many trees, mighty rock outcrops and fabulous views. When we went outside at night and lay on the grass we could see a million stars and hear total silence, glorious! We kept cows and goats, chickens, ducks, geese and Guinea fowl, a happy Australian Kelpie dog, small parrots and sometimes cats. We had dams and tanks for our irrigation and drinking water and either sunshine or fires gave us our hot water. Trish developed a magnificent garden; our orchard was just beginning to produce fruit when we sold up and came to the city.

There are so many memories of those years and they come to mind when I consider the world today. Is Jesus prompting us to sell up from the city and establish a "safe place", some kind of self-sufficient small farm far from the looming troubles? After all, Trish teaches home economics, gardening and even permaculture, and I am good at planning and design, and am an accomplished handyman with great tools. We would be excellent candidates to attempt such a project.

When the coronavirus first started to spread I began to think these thoughts but quickly said "no". In my heart I think I meant "no, not yet, wait a while". So I have been seeking Jesus' counsel on this for several months.

God said to Abraham "Jehovah Jireh, the Lord will provide" (Genesis 22:14). This account is early in the Bible and sounds, to me, very reassuring. At the time Abraham was on his way to sacrifice his son to God. He may have thought this a strange request seeing as God had promised that Abraham would be "father of many nations"; to achieve this Isaac would need to be alive and married and have children, not be a dead son on a mountain.

But Abraham desired above all else to obey this God who had found him, so he fully planned to go ahead with the sacrifice; (this would have been considered quite normal in those days). But, (and here is the great part of the story), Abraham knew God and had faith that God would fulfill His plans (Hebrews 11:8-10); it followed, as night follows day, that God would provide everything necessary so that the sacrifice could go ahead and Abraham would be father to nations. Well God did, He provided, (Genesis 22:8, 22:13), this is according to His nature, and He never changes (James 1:17).

I have been thinking about this while I consider our possible (?) self-sufficient country acres:

• Our self-supplied sufficiency would mean that we are far from the God-given sufficiency of our children who now are all within a forty-minute drive from here, a big loss to us.

• We would also lose our close contact with our Christian brothers and sisters with whom we share so much, who are "our church", the ecclesia or "gathered ones" God has given us for life and discipleship and fellowship and love.

• Trish would have to leave her job, which she loves, teaching life skills to teenagers, a huge loss to her, and to them!

• As a couple, we would also lose the opportunity to have God show us how much He loves and cares for us .. right through the Bible He shows us how He came to people who were at the absolute end of their strength and resources; then from His love, He would "meet all their needs" (Matthew 6:25-34, Luke 12:22-34, Philippians 4:19).

If we are busy day and night looking after our chickens and cows, our gardens and water supplies, indeed all of our self-sufficiency, then we will have no time to care for and serve others or to maintain our relationship with our lovely Jesus. In Jesus, God has given each of us works to do so that His will may be done on the Earth (John 14:12); He really wants us to be about these works and not shrinking back (Philippians 2:12).

The works are not simply to keep us busy and out of trouble, they are necessary for God's plans for the world to unfold. God chose us specially, every single Christian, man, woman and child (Ephesians 1:4), and is equipping us for the life (Ephesians 4:1) and the destiny He always planned (Ephesians 2:10). Jesus gave everything for us (Ephesians 5:27), He is worthy of His bride, a perfect bride, spotless and radiant (Revelation 19:7), our works here will make glorious white linen garments (Revelation 19:7-8) that we will wear for our wedding feast with Jesus, and that will be a very big day in Heaven (Revelation 19:6-9).

Time and again we rejoice in Scripture where God shows that He is our "foundation" (Isaiah 33:6), our "rock" (Deuteronomy 32:4), our "deliverer" (Psalm 144:2), and is "good" (2 Corinthians 1:20).

These days I spend so much time thinking about truth (John 1:17). I am aware that truth is being driven from the media and public discussion, and from our children's and grandchildren's education. In these confusing times we have an opportunity to live out our certain knowledge of truth, being sure of where we come from and to whom we belong, knowing right from wrong and good from evil (Proverbs 14:22) and helping others who are struggling (Matthew 25:44, Acts 20:35).

God will care for our material needs as He did for Israel for forty years in the desert, and how He has done for millions of His people through all the centuries since.

When I set aside "quiet time" to read, ponder and pray, Jesus often gives me a Scripture to read to get me started. In all the years we have been doing this he has only given the book of Revelation once and that was years ago. For about three weeks we read Revelation every morning; I found it very hard going.

At the end of that time Jesus said, "John, we are done. Now tell me what you have found in this book". What I found was clear: the end times are surely coming and they will be very hard. They will be hard for everybody including Christians, and deadly for many. If we "cleave" to Jesus (Luke 9:23, John 9:38, Acts 11:23 Amplified) He will continue to be "our hope" (Psalm 119:114), "our rock" (Psalm 144:1), "our fortress" (Psalm 71:3) and "our deliverer" (Psalm 18:2), even if we go hungry or we die. 

Only those Christians who truly cleave to Jesus will know peace (John 14:27, John 16:33), because they will have Jesus in their heart and He will continually fill their spirit (Acts 4:31). For everybody else it will be uncertain, terrifying and dreadful (Revelation 13, 17). Only Jesus' followers will have anything besides them-self (Matthew 17:7-8, John 8:9).

Even as their brother lay dead, Mary and Martha learned that it is better by far to be near to Jesus than anywhere else (Luke 10:40-41). Centuries previously the sons of Kora declared that, even under the Old Covenant, where-ever the Lord dwelt, that was the best and safest place for us:

"Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked" (Psalm 84:10).

Favourite Bible Verses

In Matthew 6 Jesus tells his disciples: "Do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on .. Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they .. Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these" (6:25-30).

Jesus continues: "So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'  For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.  But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.  Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own"  (Matthew 6:32-34).

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16).

"Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready;  it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure - for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints" (Revelation 19:7-8).

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that [my people] may have life, and have it to the full" (John 10:10).

Besides

I believe that self-sufficiency is now pretty much a myth ..

We all now depend on so many electric and digital appliances and tools. Most of what we have was manufactured to last a short while and be replaced. Things which can be repaired usually need an expert and specialised parts. If you cannot repair or replace something essential then you will be stuck. My grandparents had things which were designed and built to last a lifetime and more, Grandpa and Grandma knew how to use them and keep them working and were prepared to put in the necessary hours to do all this. Most of their meals were cooked from a very limited range of fresh food on a wood-fired stove which hourly needed fuel. These are fundamental issues.

Another thing. Those future-apocalyptic movies show the world as it has always been. When devastating times come so do the roving bands of lawless strong men with their guns, dogs and trucks. The land-holders get put in the ground or driven off into the wilderness and their self-sufficiency turns out to be transitory. It may have been lovely but then it is gone. Jesus is offering us a better path, a path which has been proven throughout history. We may know God as our “shield” and “fortress” but this will not stop many others being fearful all the time; those people need us to show how precious is life in the Spirit with Jesus (Romans 8:11; Revelation 2:7), He who is truth and also the Way (Acts 24:14).

Jesus Assures Us

"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world"  (John 16:33).

"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid" (John 14:27).

Praise Jesus. Amen.

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Bless us all.