There is none like You

 The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship. 

Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known.

They speak without a sound or word; their voice is never heard.

Yet their message has gone throughout the earth, and their words to all the world.

God has made a home in the heavens for the sun. It bursts forth like a radiant bridegroom after his wedding.It rejoices like a great athlete eager to run the race.

The sun rises at one end of the heavens and follows its course to the other end.

Nothing can hide from its heat. 

The instructions of the Lord are perfect, reviving the soul. The decrees of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The commandments of the Lord are right,

bringing joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are clear, giving insight for living.

Reverence for the Lord is pure, lasting forever. The laws of the Lord are true; each one is fair. They are more desirable than gold, even the finest gold.

They are sweeter than honey, even honey dripping from the comb.

They are a warning to your servant, a great reward for those who obey them.

How can I know all the sins lurking in my heart? Cleanse me from these hidden faults.

Keep your servant from deliberate sins! Don’t let them control me. Then I will be free of guilt

and innocent of great sin. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.

Psalm 19

Our Father is so much greater and bigger than us but He cares deeply and goes to great lengths to guide and provide for our lives. This psalm is one of my most favourite psalms and yes I have posted it before and will post it again forgive me. This blog exists to encourage us to meditate on the Word of the Lord for when we do not only do we learn to live in His presence. We find joy and peace for all life and its challenges a we learn who He is and trust Him in all.

Meditate on the majesty of our Father.

All my life You have been faithful

He has given me a new song to sing, a hymn of praise to our God.

Many will see what he has done and be amazed.

They will put their trust in the Lord.

Oh, the joys of those who trust the Lord, who have no confidence in the proud or in those who worship idols.

O Lord my God, you have performed many wonders for us.

Your plans for us are too numerous to list.

You have no equal.

Psalm 40

Today I celebrate one week having moved from my hometown. This is a move I have been praying about and saving for. BUT God  made it happen a year earlier. 

The past week has been a week of reflection and gratitude. He has never let me walk alone, nor have I ever not been provided for.

I use I for I am sharing my celebration BUT our Father is the same for all of us, I would encourage us to reflect this week, remember and celebrate how far He has carried and provided for each and every single one of us.

meditation on salvation

But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength. 1 Corinthians 1

You will tell his people how to find salvation through forgiveness of their sins.

Because of God’s tender mercy, the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us,

to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide us to the path of peace.”

Luke 1

Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

Ephesians 2

What we do see is Jesus, who for a little while was given a position “a little lower than the angels”; and because he suffered death for us, he is now “crowned with glory and honour.” Yes, by God’s grace, Jesus tasted death for everyone. God, for whom and through whom everything was made, chose to bring many children into glory. And it was only right that he should make Jesus, through his suffering, a perfect leader, fit to bring them into their salvation.

Hebrews 2

If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved. As the Scriptures tell us, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.” Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, who gives generously to all who call on him. For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Romans 10

the power of God, the wisdom of God

 “By what power, or in whose name, have you done this?”

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of our people, are we being questioned today because we’ve done a good deed for a crippled man? Do you want to know how he was healed? Let me clearly state to all of you and to all the people of Israel that he was healed by the powerful name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, the man you crucified but whom God raised from the dead For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says,

‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’

There is salvation in no one else!

God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”

Acts 4

So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it’s all nonsense.

But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. 

This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength.

1 Corinthians 1

Last week we meditated on the resurrection and what it means to us, 

This week I would like us to consider the gift of Salvation, It is a gift, we do not work for it or earn it, Our Father freely makes it available to all people of all nations, 

Triumphant privilege 2

 Meditation on the resurrection

Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. 

He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said.

But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead.

He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died.

So you see, just as death came into the world through a man, now the resurrection from the dead has begun through another man. Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life.

But there is an order to this resurrection: Christ was raised as the first of the harvest; then all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back

These dying bodies cannot inherit what will last forever.

But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed! It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed. For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies.

1 Corinthians 15

triumphant privilege

 Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?”John 11

I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen..”Matthew 28

Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled: “Death is swallowed up in victory.

O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”

For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless.1Corinthians 15

We walk triumphantly over sin and death because of our Lord. This week I thought we would meditate on the resurrection and the privilege we have because of it. 

Whosoever believes

“I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message.

I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me.

“I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me. 

Father, I want these whom you have given me to be with me where I am. Then they can see all the glory you gave me because you loved me even before the world began!

“O righteous Father, the world doesn’t know you, but I do; and these disciples know you sent me. I have revealed you to them, and I will continue to do so. Then your love for me will be in them, and I will be in them.”

For so loved the world that He gave His only Son, Whosoever believes shall not perish they shall have eternal life.

All who are mine belong to You

 My prayer is not for the world, but for those you have given me, because they belong to you. All who are mine belong to you, and you have given them to me, so they bring me glory. Now I am departing from the world; they are staying in this world, but I am coming to you. Holy Father, you have given me your name; now protect them by the power of your name so that they will be united just as we are. During my time here, I protected them by the power of the name you gave me. I guarded them so that not one was lost, except the one headed for destruction, as the Scriptures foretold.

Now I am coming to you. I told them many things while I was with them in this world so they would be filled with my joy. I have given them your word. And the world hates them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one. They do not belong to this world any more than I do. Make them holy by your truth; teach them your word, which is truth. Just as you sent me into the world, I am sending them into the world. And I give myself as a holy sacrifice for them so they can be made holy by your truth.

People are precious and valued by our God.

Listen to our Lord's heart as He prepares for death on a cross on our behalf. 

Our Father takes ownership of us. We are His, we belong to Him. He is able to protects us  and is willing to do so. In His Word there is joy for us for nowhere else can we find love and peace so complete. Truly it is for our benefit and advantage to learn to live in His presence.

Everything I am is a gift from the Father

 “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son so he can give glory back to you. 

For you have given him authority over everyone. 

He gives eternal life to each one you have given him. 

And this is the way to have eternal life—to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth.

I brought glory to you here on earth by completing the work you gave me to do. Now, Father, bring me into the glory we shared before the world began.

This prayer our Lord prays as He is getting ready for the cross. What we set out to do from the beginning of time, let us do it Father.

We are privileged to be chosen by God for His pleasure.

I have revealed you to the ones you gave me from this world. 

They were always yours. You gave them to me, and they have kept your word. 

Now they know that everything I have is a gift from you, for I have passed on to them the message you gave me.

They accepted it and know that I came from you, and they believe you sent me.

Psalm 17

Our Father gifted us, our Lord Jesus. Each and every single Word in our bibles is a gift from God to us. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

This week we are going to journey through our Lord's prayer in Psalm 17 before He died on our behalf, This is the God we serve.

As we learn to live each moment in His presence let us see Him and appreciate Him. Everything our Lord is , everything He said and did is a gift to us from the Father.

Extol him all peoples

 I love the Lord because he hears my voice and my prayer for mercy.

Because he bends down to listen, I will pray as long as I have breath!

Then I called on the name of the Lord: “Please, Lord, save me!”

How kind the Lord is! How good he is!

So merciful, this God of ours!

The Lord protects those of childlike faith;

And so I walk in the Lord’s presence as I live here on earth!

The Lord’s Faithfulness Endures Forever

​ Praise the Lord, all nations!

Extol him, all peoples!

For great is his steadfast love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.

Praise the Lord!

Psalm 116&117

There is none like You

 Who Is like the LORD Our God?

Praise the LORD! 

Yes, give praise, O servants of the Lord.Praise the name of the Lord!

Blessed be the name of the Lord now and forever.

Everywhere—from east to west—praise the name of the Lord.

For the Lord is high above the nations; his glory is higher than the heavens.

Who can be compared with the Lord our God, who is enthroned on high?

He stoops to look down on heaven and on earth.

He lifts the poor from the dust and the needy from the garbage dump.

He sets them among princes, even the princes of his own people!

He gives the childless woman a family, making her a happy mother.

Praise the LORD!

Psalm113

Our Lord is awesome and worthy to be praised. Our God is kind and is moved by our plight and need. Our God relates to our trials and tribulations and understands us. We just read how majestic and great He is, but He cares and acts on our behalf.

This week I thought we would once again remind ourselves of the goodness and the greatness of our God. If my goal is to learn to live in His presence then I should know who He is. 

Learn to enjoy His presence

 For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.

For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him.

He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken.

On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God. Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us. 

Psalm 62

We are continuing with our theme of learning to be in our Father’s presence at all times. In all circumstances acknowledging Him for He cares for us. Enjoy being in His presence, open your heart and pour out your heart in His presence.

We began this year committing ourselves to being still and knowing that He is Lord. 

Here is a reminder.

Our Father reconciled us to Himself in His Son.

In this new year

•  may we continually renew our hope and remember our redeemer lives.

• may we stop and remind ourselves of who our Father is

• May we remind ourselves we are not alone the Father has give us a Helper, the Holy Spirit.

Truly God is my strength and portion forever

 I was so foolish and ignorant—I must have seemed like a senseless animal to you.

Yet I still belong to you; you hold my right hand.

You guide me with your counsel, leading me to a glorious destiny.

Whom have I in heaven but you? I desire you more than anything on earth.

My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever.

But as for me, how good it is to be near God!

I have made the Sovereign Lord my shelter, and I will tell everyone about the wonderful things you do.

Psalm 78

How foolish we can be at times, when we take our eyes away from our Father and who He is. Last Sunday I was challenged and encouraged by the message about learning to live in the presence of God. 

Life brings challenges and triumph, our response no matter the circumstance is to look to Him and see His goodness towards us and tell of His works. Our Father walks us through the darkest moments and even when we rejoice He is there with us. We are never abandoned.

Truly Gods presence is our strength and portion forever.

(I apologise for long absence i had to take in my laptop for repairs)

The Father's promises fuel our faith

 Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it. For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie.If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay. “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith.

Habakkuk 2

Habakuk was written when Israel was being punished and God used other nations, nations that were not obedient to God to punish Israel. Like the  prophet we also may question our experiences and think how can I, a child of God, be going through this, 

Our Father calls us to live by faith, To trust who He is and what He has said, Our Father has given us His Word to tell us and show us Himself. Get to know Him. We can only live by faith if we know His Word. Faith grows when His Word inhabits our hearts and minds.

Living in faith

  

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. Proverbs 3

And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” 

And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness. Genesis 15

We began our journey this year with psalm 46 reminding ourselves to take time and be still and consider the goodness and greatness of our Father.. 

This week we are reminding ourselves of the grace we have been given faith. Choosing to live in trust of our good and great Father. Take Him at his Word and you will see that living a life of faith brings peace and joy in our lives. Anchor your life in Him and see.

Put your trust in Him

Praise the LORD!

Praise the LORD, O my soul!

I will praise the LORD as long as I live;

I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.

Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation.

When his breath departs, he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans perish.

Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God,

who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, who keeps faith forever;

who executes justice for the oppressed, who gives food to the hungry.

The LORD sets the prisoners free; the LORD opens the eyes of the blind.

The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down; the LORD loves the righteous.

The LORD watches over the sojourners; he upholds the widow and the fatherless,

but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin. 

The LORD will reign forever, your God, O Zion, to all generations.

Praise the LORD!

Be still and know that I am God. Have faith in me, I care for you and provide for you, Remember I sacrificed my Son and redeemed you and gave you the Holy Spirit as a Helper for your journey of faith.

 

Walking by the Spirit

 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.

The Holy Spirit testifies of our Lord and through His help we can live lives that testify of our Lord and King. Turn to Him for He is the breath of our Lord and will never lead us astray. He is the promise of God and the only way for us to live lives that honour our Lord. We are not alone, let us not walk without our Help.

Living in the Spirit

 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.

Romans 8

Our Lord gave us a Helper and this Helper reminds of His Word; helps and guides us in our journey. Today we learn of living in the Spirit, please make time to read the chapter.

The Spirit helps us overcome self and sin. He frees us to live for Christ our Lord. 

He empowers and strengthens to live for the glory of our God.

The one who abides with us

But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. John 14

Who is the Holy Spirit?

He is our Help through this journey of faith. He is our advocate; our counselor. He is there to remind us the Word of Truth. He is our comforter and the one who walks alongside.  He is our guide as we journey to become more and more like our Lord Jesus. 

We are a priviledged people our journey has a helper, one who can help us in all of life. We are sometimes afraid or dont understand our Helper but the scripture above is our Lord telling us who He is and our need of Him. 

Know that the Lord has given us the Holy Spirit to aid us dont neglect to get to know Him and learn to trust Him as we seek to be like Jesus.

 

We are never alone

 Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

John 16

Continuing with our theme for 2023. In the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit we have HOPE 

next week  we will be continuing to look at the work of  the Holy Spirit in our lives, We are not alone the HELPER is with us.

My redeemer lives

Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David,

I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no different from a slave, though he is the owner of everything, but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by his father. In the same way we also, when we were children, were enslaved to the elementary principles of the world. But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.

Oh that my words were written! Oh that they were inscribed in a book! Oh that with an iron pen and lead they were engraved in the rock forever! For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth.And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. My heart faints within me!

Luke 1; Galatians 4; Job 19

Oh what a privilege to know that we have a redeemer and He lives. Luke celebrates the coming of our redeemer and honours our Father for the gift of His Son; Paul in galatians reminds us because of Christ we are children of God and we are to live by faith.

Job reminds us  that our Father is the beginning and the end. we are to trust and revere Him no matter the circumstance.

Just as we said in the first blog this year, In the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit we have HOPE.

Be still I am God

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Selah

Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations,

I will be exalted in the earth!” The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah

Psalm 46

Taking a moment each day to consider how great our God is.

Sit still and meditate on Him,He is worthy of our honour and praise. When we look to His greatness we gain perspective and  are reminded of His goodness and power. Suddenly we are not so ovewhelmed.

Our HOPE

 A new hope, our old hope, and our only hope. Christ our Lord, our Ever Living Hope.

As we reflect on the past year and look with hope to the new year with hope may our inspiration be our Christ our Lord. In Him all things are renewed, we have been renewed.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

1 Peter 1

Our Father reconciled us to Himself in His Son.

In this new year

•  may we continually renew our hope and remember our redeemer lives.

• may we stop and remind ourselves of who our Father is

• May we remind ourselves we are not alone the Father has give us a Helper, the Holy Spirit.

As we face the new year with hope, we are aware of the wars, the state of the economy, the high unemployment rate BUT in the Father , the Son and the Holy Spirit we have HOPE for all of life.