Posts

Showing posts from September, 2016

Celebrate because God is Faithful

Image
God is always faithful. Take a minute, and let that really sink in. He will always love you, protect you and wait for you to turn to him. His arms are constantly open, ready to embrace you and lift you up. It is far harder for us, as humans, to be faithful. We are never going to be anywhere near as faithful as God, not even to those we love the most. But we can choose to put our faithfulness to God at the forefront of our busy lives, and let him lead us forwards. Up until the past year, I was determined to be in charge of my life. I steamrollered ahead with my own selfish desires and stubbornly made my own decisions, based purely on what I wanted. It was during this time that I had a breakdown; where I struggled mentally, lost weight and sleep and felt very alone. And as usual, God stepped in to save the day.  And, for the first time, ever, I desperately reached out for him and told him that I depended on him to get me through this awful time. And whilst God off

Do Not Put God In A Box

Image
It goes without saying, that you can't literally put God into a box. He's the creator of the entire world, so I doubt he would fit, and he's much too important. That's not really what I'm talking about. Do not put God into a metaphorical box, in your head. I was guilty, in the past, of limiting God's ability to work in my life, and help me through my problems. I used to think 'God can't help with this, he doesn't understand'... Thinking like that, will limit God's presence in your life. Because determinedly following your own path and desires in life, will tell God that you don't care what he thinks and what he has planned for you. The idea of surrendering your life choices and future to someone else is a very scary thought. I do understand that. But I know that I don't surrender my life to 'someone else', I surrender it to my best friend. It has taken me a long time to understand and accept something very basic

Spiritual Weapons

Image
Mankind is up against a lot. You know the saying, that 'life is like a roller-coaster'... well sometimes the twists and turns and downward-spirals we face, in life, can really make us want to scream, and be sick. Humans struggle day to day, all over the world, with hundreds of thousands of problems. We all know that life is full of amazing things, but we struggle too, and, often, we can feel WAY out of our depth. But, when you have faith, you possess the most powerful weapons in the world. Spiritual weapons. Read this passage from Ephesians 6: 'God is strong, and he wants you strong... Be prepared. You're up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon that God has issued, so that when it's all over but the shouting you'll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith and salvation are more than words'. 'God wants us strong'... good! Because I don't like the idea of b

Why does God allow suffering?

Image
This is a big question, a very popular one that is asked by Non-Christians; and my answer is going to be considerably shorter than you probably anticipated. Why does God allow suffering? I mean, he tells me to love him, trust him and give my life to him, and yet I see so many terrible things happen in the world... so much suffering, where is God among that? How can I trust him? Well, first off, are you telling me that God should dispose of all suffering? If the answer to that question is yes, then you're saying that God should get rid of you and me, and everyone else on the planet. We have all, at some point in our lives, caused someone else to suffer. We are not perfect. And if God should stop any and all suffering from happening, then there isn't much of a future for the rest of mankind. In fact, we would be the first thing to go. God does not cause suffering . Suffering is a consequence of the world that we live in. God hates seeing us suffer; remember, that he lo

Choose an obedient heart

Image
When someone asks you to pray for them, you can sometimes feel under a lot of pressure. I know that's happened to me, many times. You may think: What if nothing happens? What if I don't have enough faith? What if. Doubting yourself is natural. As human beings we are flawed, and we live in a sinful world. But, when it comes to God, doubting is pointless. When you pray for healing for someone, whether it be a physical illness, an emotional one or a spiritual problem, you are praying in God's strength, not your own. Without God you can do nothing, but with the Holy Spirit living inside you (God's gift to us), you can see miracles happen; today, right now. In the past year, since I truly became a Christian, living a life for Christ, I have seen people healed. I have prayed, myself, for people to receive healing, and they have been set free from pain, instantly. It is the most amazing thing in the world, because I can see and feel the Holy Spirit working through m

Good Gifts

Image
'Faith is being sure of what we hope for, and certain of what we do not see' (Hebrews 11:1) Life may be complicated, it may be scary and uncertain, but God sees our path. He has seen our fears conquered, our anxieties crushed and his promises for us come to pass. God hasn't promised us that life is going to be easy, but he has promised that he is going to be with us forever; leading us towards hope, peace, love and salvation. Trust him, because he sees all before you. He knows how to give you good gifts. "Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, would give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!" (Matthew 7:7-10)

God and the Chess Game

Image
Sharing the gospel can be difficult. In the past, I struggled to talk to other Christians about the gospel, let alone Non-Christians. Firstly, I didn't know much about the gospel, so there wasn't much I could say about it. And, on top of that, I didn't know how to discuss the topic, without there being all kinds of questions asked that I didn't know how to answer. Questions like: If there is a God then why does he allow suffering, isn't he supposed to be loving? and How can you believe in God rather than evolution? And then that would be my argument lost. I thought those questions were too big, too sensitive. So, I had a problem. How could I answer those questions, and have people see the grace of God that I knew to be true?... Well, I can now answer both of those questions and more (which I will do in future blogs), which has given life to the way I share the gospel. Important - below is the way I learnt to share the gospel, using a method designed by The L