Job 18: 4: "You who tear yourselves to pieces in anger..."
Scanning through some old work I came across this article I had saved on forgiveness:
The Times - January 3, 2008 - To err is human, to forgive good for your health by Rebecca Newman
"What could you never bring yourself to forgive – some transgression so heinous that the very idea of forgiving the treacherous toad responsible makes your blood boil? But what if forgiveness were good for your health? Forgiveness is, of course, a tenet central to most religions. Every Christian knows by heart the lines “forgive those who trespass against us . . .”
But it is not just balm for the soul. A ten-year research project reveals that “forgiveness interventions”, where patients are guided into forgiving thoughts, benefit their well being. Even one or two “interventions” can improve cardiovascular function, diminish chronic pain, relieve depression and lower blood pressure.
At the same time, the study found that an inability to pardon can raise a person’s risk of heart disease and mental illness.
Happily, for those to whom forgiveness does not come so easily, the researchers assert that it is behaviour that can be learnt, like eating well and taking exercise."
We must forgive for our own physical and spiritual well-being.
Sometimes we as Christians can simply forgive others because the Bible teaches us we must. Other times we need to ask God to help us forgive others, and He does. God may give us someone to help us on the pathway to forgiving. Through whatever means - FORGIVE.
Who do you need to forgive?
18 August 2009
7 August 2009
Eat This Book!
I love this quote I read recently in ‘Life With God’ by Richard Foster, taken from ‘Eat This Book’ by Eugene Peterson. I also love the title ‘Eat This Book’!
“Christians feed on Scripture. Holy Scripture nurtures the holy community as food nurtures the human body. Christians don’t simply learn or study or use Scripture; we assimilate it, take it into our lives in such a way that it gets metabolized into acts of love, cups of cold water, missions into all the world, healing and evangelism and justice in Jesus’ name, hands raised in adoration of the Father, feet washed in company with the Son.”
Do we see the Bible in this light? I know when I spend time reading the word of God my spiritual heartbeat picks up, there is an alertness in me, I know what I need to do, how I need to live.
Hebrews 4:12 - “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”
How often are you eating this great Book?
“Christians feed on Scripture. Holy Scripture nurtures the holy community as food nurtures the human body. Christians don’t simply learn or study or use Scripture; we assimilate it, take it into our lives in such a way that it gets metabolized into acts of love, cups of cold water, missions into all the world, healing and evangelism and justice in Jesus’ name, hands raised in adoration of the Father, feet washed in company with the Son.”
Do we see the Bible in this light? I know when I spend time reading the word of God my spiritual heartbeat picks up, there is an alertness in me, I know what I need to do, how I need to live.
Hebrews 4:12 - “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”
How often are you eating this great Book?
2 August 2009
Refreshment and Restoration
Acts 3:17-26 - Read about times of refreshing which we can access now (v.19) and a time of restoration which is to come (v.21).
Be Filled With The Holy Spirit
Acts 4:8 -10 - "Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: "Rulers and elders of the people! If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed, then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed."
Acts 2:4 - "All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.”
Acts 4:31 - “After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.”
Points to remember:
1) Prayer can precede being filled with the Holy Spirit. . When we step out to witness we can be filled with the Holy Spirit. Why only ‘can’? We have to have the knowledge of this and the desire to be filled. We need to ask. When we ask and we receive these times of prayer and witnessing are powerful.
2) We can be filled individually and we can be filled corporately. In Acts 2:4 and 4:31 the corporate infilling came after a time(s) of prayer.
3) Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit more than once. He was present in all three situations mentioned in the Bible verses above. Ephesians 6:18 tells us that we need to be continually filled: “…be filled with the Spirit.” It is not clear in the Bible as to why (unless someone can enlighten me), but many a great man and woman of God have said in the past that we ‘leak’ as we sin (light and darkness cannot dwell in the same place) or as we minister and witness to others.
Acts 2:4 - "All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.”
Acts 4:31 - “After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.”
Points to remember:
1) Prayer can precede being filled with the Holy Spirit. . When we step out to witness we can be filled with the Holy Spirit. Why only ‘can’? We have to have the knowledge of this and the desire to be filled. We need to ask. When we ask and we receive these times of prayer and witnessing are powerful.
2) We can be filled individually and we can be filled corporately. In Acts 2:4 and 4:31 the corporate infilling came after a time(s) of prayer.
3) Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit more than once. He was present in all three situations mentioned in the Bible verses above. Ephesians 6:18 tells us that we need to be continually filled: “…be filled with the Spirit.” It is not clear in the Bible as to why (unless someone can enlighten me), but many a great man and woman of God have said in the past that we ‘leak’ as we sin (light and darkness cannot dwell in the same place) or as we minister and witness to others.
31 July 2009
Cat and Mole (Not Mouse!)
Matthew 28:19 – “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,…”
We recently moved house from a very urban area to an area with more green space. Our cat, Gracie, in the urban area would always bring home feathers to play with from the local pigeon coop one of the residents owned. These feathers had fallen out of the pigeons already. They were the evidence that pigeons existed, but Gracie had not been with them!
Since moving, in the space of one week she has bought home 6 baby moles. Being a gentle soul she brings them home alive to share the joy with us! She drops them in our living room or takes them upstairs to run around the house. Bless! I have caught two now and put them back in the field (locking Gracie in for 50 minutes or so to give the poor thing a head start!), but I usually chicken out if my husband is around and scream for his assistance.
We have had Gracie for just over 4 years now. The majority of her life has shown little opportunity to go hunting and catch small furry animals, an innate instinct she has, but as soon as the opportunity has arisen in this more countryside surrounding those instincts have naturally surfaced and gone into action.
As Christians we need to put ourselves in group or individual situations where there is a spiritual ‘countryside’ before us – an opportunity for our supernatural instincts to surface, which is to witness to those that do not know God. If we do not put ourselves in those surroundings then all we will bring home are feathers – the evidence that those who are lost are all around us, from what we see and pick up on in our daily lives, but we have not been with them.
How do we do this? As a church and as individuals we need to meet with non-Christians. Not, as some would suggest, to create false friendships merely to see these people become Christians, but to create friendships where as a friend we have to tell them about Jesus and the love of God, or what kind of friend are we?
We recently moved house from a very urban area to an area with more green space. Our cat, Gracie, in the urban area would always bring home feathers to play with from the local pigeon coop one of the residents owned. These feathers had fallen out of the pigeons already. They were the evidence that pigeons existed, but Gracie had not been with them!
Since moving, in the space of one week she has bought home 6 baby moles. Being a gentle soul she brings them home alive to share the joy with us! She drops them in our living room or takes them upstairs to run around the house. Bless! I have caught two now and put them back in the field (locking Gracie in for 50 minutes or so to give the poor thing a head start!), but I usually chicken out if my husband is around and scream for his assistance.
We have had Gracie for just over 4 years now. The majority of her life has shown little opportunity to go hunting and catch small furry animals, an innate instinct she has, but as soon as the opportunity has arisen in this more countryside surrounding those instincts have naturally surfaced and gone into action.
As Christians we need to put ourselves in group or individual situations where there is a spiritual ‘countryside’ before us – an opportunity for our supernatural instincts to surface, which is to witness to those that do not know God. If we do not put ourselves in those surroundings then all we will bring home are feathers – the evidence that those who are lost are all around us, from what we see and pick up on in our daily lives, but we have not been with them.
How do we do this? As a church and as individuals we need to meet with non-Christians. Not, as some would suggest, to create false friendships merely to see these people become Christians, but to create friendships where as a friend we have to tell them about Jesus and the love of God, or what kind of friend are we?
23 July 2009
The Manifest Presence Of God
I recently read Leonard Ravenhill’s book ‘Why Revival Tarries’ and then Rodney Howard-Browne’s book ‘The Touch of God’. There is restlessness in me to see more of the supernatural manifestations of God. Not because I am one of those ‘flaky’ or ‘OTT’ Pentecostal Christians, but because I know that God wants to show His manifest presence in the church. Acts 2, and many other scriptures, shows us that the church should be displaying signs and wonders as part of its meeting together. A relevant excellent church and the manifest presence of God can go hand in hand when handled by mature Christlike leaders.
Acts 2:15-18:“These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: “‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.’” (NIV)
Acts 2:15-18:“These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: “‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.’” (NIV)
Sometimes...
Philippians 3:14: “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining towards what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (NIV)
Sometimes, I feel like Elijah - passionate and fearless (well apart from the Jezebel incident!).
Sometimes, I feel I’m displaying some of the character and personality of Jesus. Well rounded in my emotions, strong when I need to be, compassionate, and at times full of sorrow. Looking towards God to empower me to do His work - seeing what He wants me to do.
Sometimes, I feel like Jeremiah full of sadness over the state of the world, the state of God’s people.
Sometimes, I feel like Judas or Peter. Not that I would deny or betray Jesus, but betray who He is in my actions, attitude and attentions.
To say this journey is easy is to be complacent and shows a life that has stopped moving forwards in their faith. We need to die daily to ourselves. To say we should not struggle is to not understand the tension between this earthly life and the heavenly destiny we yearn for.
Sometimes is one step forward towards most of the time.
Sometimes, I feel like Elijah - passionate and fearless (well apart from the Jezebel incident!).
Sometimes, I feel I’m displaying some of the character and personality of Jesus. Well rounded in my emotions, strong when I need to be, compassionate, and at times full of sorrow. Looking towards God to empower me to do His work - seeing what He wants me to do.
Sometimes, I feel like Jeremiah full of sadness over the state of the world, the state of God’s people.
Sometimes, I feel like Judas or Peter. Not that I would deny or betray Jesus, but betray who He is in my actions, attitude and attentions.
To say this journey is easy is to be complacent and shows a life that has stopped moving forwards in their faith. We need to die daily to ourselves. To say we should not struggle is to not understand the tension between this earthly life and the heavenly destiny we yearn for.
Sometimes is one step forward towards most of the time.
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