Tuesday 2 November 2010

What I know about the Old Apostolic Church

The last biblical apostle ( John, whom wrote Revelations) died about 100 A.D, and then 1700 years later, the Old Apostolic Church (OAC) suddenly commissioned 12 new apostles (1865) whom was then given "power" to go out and "forgive people their sins" , "seal them" i.e. an Apostle is the "light of nations so that they can give salvation till all ends of the earth"

I can not earn my salvation i.e. eternal life other than trough faith ;
Rom 6:23 The payment for sin is death, but the gift that God freely gives is everlasting life found in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Eph 2:8 God saved you through faith as an act of kindness. You had nothing to do with it. Being saved is a gift from God.
Gal 3:11 No one receives God's approval by obeying the law's standards since, "The person who has God's approval will live by faith.
Joh 1:9-13 The real light, which shines on everyone, was coming into the world. (10) He was in the world, and the world came into existence through him. Yet, the world didn't recognize him. (11) He went to his own people, and his own people didn't accept him. (12) However, he gave the right to become God's children to everyone who believed in him. (13) These people didn't become God's children in a physical way-from a human impulse or from a husband's desire to have a child. They were born from God."
Act 16:31 They answered, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you and your family will be saved."

Eph 2:18-21 For through him (Jesus), both of us have access to the Father in one Spirit (the Holy Spirit). (19) That is why you (all sincere believers) are no longer strangers and foreigners but fellow citizens with the saints (all other sincere believers) and members of God's (spiritual )household, (20) having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets (which is the whole, contractual Word of God; the Old and well as the New Testament), Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone. (the Head as well as the cornerstone). (21) In him the whole building ( all sincere believers i.e the Church i.e. the body of Christ) is joined together and rises into a holy sanctuary in the Lord.

The Bible is the Word of God ; thus not the word that comes out the mouth of one Apostle alone
2Ti 3:16 Every Scripture passage is inspired by God. All of them are useful for teaching, pointing out errors, correcting people, and training them for a life that has God's approval.·

No man can interact with or on behalf of the dead
Deu 18:10-12 You must never sacrifice your sons or daughters by burning them alive, practice black magic, be a fortune teller, witch, or sorcerer, (11) cast spells, ask ghosts or spirits for help, or consult the dead. (12) Whoever does these things is disgusting to the LORD. The LORD your God is forcing these nations out of your way because of their disgusting practices.

No mortal is or can become an Angel.

The foundation of Apostles are those that knew and witnessed Jesus i.e. the original Apostles chosen of whom John was the last.

Faith is more than knowledge of God and Jesus Christ, is to believe that Jesus is whom He was and to depend on Him alone and fully; then only, one can and will receive the free gift from GOD i.e eternal life.

 The Kingdom of heaven is a spiritual world where GOD spiritually / physically lives.
Act 1:9-10 After he had said this, he was taken to heaven. A cloud hid him so that they could no longer see him. (10) They were staring into the sky as he departed. Suddenly, two men in white clothes stood near them.

When I accepted Christ as my Saviour, I was reborn, received the Holy Spirit and become part of the spiritual Kingdom of God, is a member of the body of Christ, is a member of his Church.
Rom 10:9-10 If you declare that Jesus is Lord, and believe that God brought him back to life, you will be saved. (10) By believing you receive God's approval, and by declaring your faith you are saved.

Jesus Christ is my intermediary to GOD and Jesus is the only Head of the Church

Eph 1:17-23 I pray that the glorious Father, the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, would give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know Christ better. (18) Then you will have deeper insight. You will know the confidence that he calls you to have and the glorious wealth that God's people will inherit. (19) You will also know the unlimited greatness of his power as it works with might and strength for us, the believers. (20) He worked with that same power in Christ when he brought him back to life and gave him the highest position in heaven. (21) He is far above all rulers, authorities, powers, lords, and all other names that can be named, not only in this present world but also in the world to come. (22) God has put everything under the control of Christ. He has made Christ the head of everything for the good of the church. (23) The church is Christ's body and completes him as he fills everything in every way.

My bible i.e the same bible the OAC uses, tells me never to place my everlasting soul in the hand of any mortal. GOD has given us the Truth, the Light, so that we know that we have eternal life through Jesus Christ alone.
Joh 14:6 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Do I condemn the OAC or any of its members? No I don't.

I only need to / want to tell the truth, GOD will do the rest.

This I will do whenever GOD gives me the opportunity.......

I will share the truth with my sons.

Eph 1:17 I pray that the glorious Father, the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, would give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know Christ better.

Thursday 13 May 2010

Today - Acension

What more to say?

As Believers we should just take the time to reflect on what Jesus did and whom He is.

Joh 17:24 "Father, I want those you have given to me to be with me, to be where I am. I want them to see my glory, which you gave me because you loved me before the world was made.

Do you believe that God the Father, God the Son & God the Spirit is indeed one? Most of John 17 gives to a good idea that They are. In any event, as Believers , we should believe in faith, by disclosure of the Living Word, that it is indeed true.

More in interesting is verse 24 ( stated above). Jesus, Son of GOD existed even before the word was made, and Jesus soke the word according to Gen 1:3 Then God said, "Let there be light!" So there was light.

Have you stopped to think, to imagine to plan, direct and offer your own son (child)? Are you an Abraham, prepared by faith to offer Isaac (your child)?

Care to pray with me?

Thank you God, that you care, that you have planned and know what you intend with me and my life, that the hairs on my head are counted. Holy Holy Holy God Father you are!!!! Thank you God for becoming man, being Jesus Christ, being the Son of God. Thank you Lord Jesus, thank you for your obedience and thank you for your blood. You are King above all Kings , you are my Redeemer, you are my High Priest! I love you!! Amen & Amen

Wednesday 12 May 2010

Professional Inspirations #20: Plan together with GOD

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

PLAN TOGETHER WITH GOD

Joh 16:33 I've told you this so that my peace will be with you. In the world you'll have trouble. But cheer up! I have overcome the world."

Joh 17:1-3 After saying this, Jesus looked up to heaven and said, "Father, the time is here. Give your Son glory so that your Son can give you glory. (2) After all, you've given him authority over all humanity so that he can give eternal life to all those you gave to him. (3) This is eternal life: to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you sent.

Tomorrow we are reminded once again of what GOD intended with each human being. We are privileged to have accepted Jesus Christ our Saviour; are privileged by the grace of GOD alone, to have received eternal life; to be called children of GOD; to be able to, through Jesus Christ, to look up to the heavens and interact with the one and only Holy Holy Holy GOD.

I Pray, by the authority of Jesus Christ, and in the name of Jesus Christ, that you experience , remember and glorify Jesus Christ in any way possible tomorrow. In His name, I ask Jesus to bless you with a renewed mind and will to continue, persist, seek and plan through Jesus Christ and according to GOD's will alone. Amen & Amen

2Co 12:9 But he (Jesus) told me (Paul / us): "My kindness is all you need. My power is strongest when you are weak." So I will (let us) brag even more about my (our) weaknesses in order that Christ's power will live in me (us).

Monday 10 May 2010

Professional Inspirations #19: A word for the Workaholic

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

PSALM 127: A WORD FOR THE WORKAHOLIC

Psa 127:2 It is useless to work hard for the food you eat by getting up early and going to bed late. The LORD gives food to those he loves while they sleep.

I had selected both the above Psalm 127: 2 and Mat 6:33, only to find them contained / referenced to in the undermentioned link. This is really really a good view to read....Please do. http://bible.org/seriespage/psalm-127-word-workaholics

The last paragraph of the conclusion drawn by Bob Deffinbaugh

"Finally, this Psalm (127) contains a principle which relates to those who may never have come to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. No matter how much you labor to earn a righteousness which you hope God will accept, your efforts will always be futile. Your works will never be acceptable to God. God has chosen to save men by His grace, not by their works. To be saved you must recognize yourself as a sinner, and your efforts to be righteous apart from God are worthless. You can be saved simply by resting in Him. He has sent His Son to be punished for your sins on Calvary. Jesus Christ is the One whose righteousness can be yours, simply by trusting in Him and receiving salvation as God’s gift of grace. In Him alone you will find the security which God gives for eternity."

Lord Father, in Jesus name, please awaken the Holy Spirit is us, command Him to talk to us, Command Him to awaken our Spiritual discernment in all we hear, do, intend and plan to do. Amen & Amen

Mat 6:33 But first, be concerned about his kingdom and what has his approval. Then all these things will be provided for you.

Thursday 6 May 2010

Professional Inspirations #18: Job satisfaction & Work pride

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

JOB SATISFACTION & WORK PRIDE

Ecc 9:10 Whatever presents itself for you to do, do it with all your might, because there is no work, planning, knowledge, or skill in the grave where you're going.

Do you perhaps come to work, pulling yourselves out of bed, already dreading the traffic on your way to work, finding your work boring, disliking your boss, hating the priority list?

Have you ever questioned the reason for work and life?

Have you approached any week by perhaps thinking or having thought;
on Tuesday; "Tomorrow's Wednesday!!!!,
by Thursday; "Tomorrow's Friday!!!!!",
on Friday; "TGIF"....(thank god its Friday!!!").

Is work boring or is it joyful?
Are you satisfied or just here for the sake of income?
Do you hate your work, or do you take pride in what you are doing?

When we speak of God's grace, we mean all the good gifts we enjoy freely in life. There are so many but a more summary approach is to affirm that life itself is the fundamental gift, with all its delights. For us, the gift of life includes the wondrous gift of being human, finding ourselves plopped down in the midst of the larger gift of creation. That is the bedrock of grace—creation, life, human being. http://www.explorefaith.org/grace.html

Rom 12:1-2 Brothers and sisters, in view of all we have just shared about God's compassion, I encourage you to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, dedicated to God and pleasing to him. This kind of worship is appropriate for you. (2) Don't become like the people of this world. Instead, change the way you think. Then you will always be able to determine what God really wants-what is good, pleasing, and perfect.

So how to remain satisfied and proud at work?........Put Christ at the centre of your Life!!!!

Joh 16:33 I've told you this so that my peace will be with you. In the world you'll have trouble. But cheer up! I have overcome the world."

Thursday 29 April 2010

Professional Inspirations #17: Believe!

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

THE PERFECT LIFESTYLE

Mat 10:5-7 Jesus sent these twelve out with the following instructions: "Don't go among people who are not Jewish or into any Samaritan city. (6) Instead, go to the lost sheep of the nation of Israel.

Act 1:6-8 So when the apostles came together, they asked him, "Lord, is this the time when you're going to restore the kingdom to Israel?" (7) Jesus told them, "You don't need to know about times or periods that the Father has determined by his own authority. (8) But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes to you. Then you will be my witnesses to testify about me in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

Above is two instances wherein Jesus instructed his disciples to be a witness of himself;

Firstly; before his crucifixion then the "kingdom of heaven that is near" and to the "lost sheep of the nation of Israel" and

Secondly; after his resurrection then as "my witnesses to testify of me" ....to the ends of the earth...to all i.e Jews and Gentiles, and

Today it is us (Jews and Gentiles), being disciples of Jesus Christ, still commanded to be a witness, to testify of Jesus...to the ends of the world.

To believe has consequences and Jesus also made some statements to his disciples that need further attention.

Because of faith in me (Jesus)...remaining faithful;

Mat 10:16-18 "I'm sending you out like sheep among wolves. So be as cunning as snakes but as innocent as doves. (17) Watch out for people who will hand you over to the Jewish courts and whip you in their synagogues. (18) Because of me you will even be brought in front of governors and kings to testify to them and to everyone in the world.

Because we believe, because we proclaim Jesus, ...because of Me...we will and can expect to be laughed at, insulted, be persecuted, be rejected etc....However, know that Jesus also said; Mat 5:11 "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, lie, and say all kinds of evil things about you because of me.

Because you are committed to me (Jesus)...remaining faithful;

Mat 10:22 Everyone will hate you because you are committed to me. But the person who patiently endures to the end will be saved.

It is a fact that not all people are as exited about Jesus as we are! We can therefore expect to be attacked in anyway possible because we are committed to Him. Jesus warns us that this will happen, so remain prepared and know that by enduring we will be saved, irrespective anything that happens to us.

Because you acknowledge me (Jesus)....being loyal;

Mat 10:30-32 Every hair on your head has been counted. (31) Don't be afraid! You are worth more than many sparrows. (32) "So I will acknowledge in front of my Father in heaven that person who acknowledges me in front of others.

What a promise!!! Be filled with the Holy Spirt and never stop listening to the Holy Spirit. It's only by and throught the Holy Spirit that we have a testimony to share. It's through faith in Jesus that we are able to acknowledge Him. Do it every day! 1Co 12:3 So I want you to know that no one speaking by God's Spirit says, "Jesus is cursed." No one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit.

Father God, in and through Jesus Christ, and by and through the Holy Sprit, keep us loyal and faithful to our only hope and foundation in life today...Jesus Christ. In your wonderful and Holy name we pray this Jesus Christ. Amen & Amen

Gal 2:16 Yet, we know that people don't receive God's approval because of their own efforts to live according to a set of standards, but only by believing in Jesus Christ. So we also believed in Jesus Christ in order to receive God's approval by faith in Christ and not because of our own efforts. People won't receive God's approval because of their own efforts to live according to a set of standards.

Friday 23 April 2010

Jesus Lewe!

Aan my seuns en hul vrouens (U Waarheid moet nog oorwin)

Daniel 4 hanteer die val van Nebukadnezar, die grootste heidense koning ( nie Joodse koning ) tot op aarde vandag. Nebukadnezar het in sy voorafgaande jare van koningskap baie met die wil en die almag van GOD te doen gekry. God het hom ( Nebukadnezar ) tot in die grond toe verneder om hom (Nebukadnezar) van GOD se almag bewus te maak. Lees gerus die hoofstuk. Dan 4:37 Nou prys ek, Nebukadnésar, en ek roem en eer die Koning van die hemel: al sy werke is waarheid en sy paaie is reg, en Hy kan verneder die wat in hulle trotsheid wandel.

Ek het vanoogend lank gebid to onse Vader deur Jesus ons Middelaar. God se Gees het my herrinner om julle spesiaal in smeking voor sy voete te le en ek wil vanoggend net weereens sy almag en liefde met jul deel .

My gebed hiermee (vir julle om kennis van te neem ) is eenvoudig die volgende; Psa 86:11 Leer my, HERE, u weg: ek sal in u waarheid wandel; verenig my hart tot die vrees van u Naam.

Spesiale sterkte, vertroue, afhanklikheid en seeninge vanaf onse Jesus Christus vir jou vir die naweek. Jul bly in my gebede.

Luister na die Gees van God

Aan Johan
('n kollega van my, voorheen van die Ou Apostoliese geloof, tans verwyder vanaf geloof )

Daniel 4 hanteer die val van Nebukadnezar, die grootste heidense koning ( nie Joodse koning ) tot op aarde vandag. Nebukadnezar het in sy voorafgaande jare van koningskap baie met die wil en die almag van GOD te doen gekry. God het hom ( Nebukadnezar ) tot in die grond toe verneder om hom (Nebukadnezar) van GOD se almag bewus te maak. Lees gerus die hoofstuk. Dan 4:37 Nou prys ek, Nebukadnésar, en ek roem en eer die Koning van die hemel: al sy werke is waarheid en sy paaie is reg, en Hy kan verneder die wat in hulle trotsheid wandel.

Ek het vanoggend lank gebid to onse Vader deur Jesus ons Middelaar. God se Gees het my van jou omstandighede herrinner en ek wil vanoggend net weereens sy almag en liefde met jou deel .

My gebed hiermee is die eenvoudig die volgende; Psa 86:11 Leer my, HERE, u weg: ek sal in u waarheid wandel; verenig my hart tot die vrees van u Naam.

Spesiale sterkte, vertroue, afhanklikheid en seeninge vanaf onse Jesus Christus vir jou vir die naweek. Jul bly in my gebede.

Professional Inspirations #16: Be a Blessing

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

PERFORM YOUR DAILY TASKS TO THE BLESSING OF OTHER

Luk 19:5-10 When Jesus came to the tree, he looked up and said, "Zacchaeus, hurry and come down! I must stay at your house today." (6) Zacchaeus came down quickly and was glad to welcome him into his home. (7) But all the people who saw this began to complain, saying, "He went to be the guest of a notorious sinner!" (8) Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, "Lord, I'll give half of my possessions to the poor. I'll pay four times as much as I owe if I have cheated anyone in any way." (9) Then Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this home, because he, too, is a descendant of Abraham. (10) For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost."

Zacchaeus, as a Tax Collector worked for the Roman Empire. In the above and at the time after spending time with Jesus, he stood up, and he had a moment; a turn in heart..... He became aware he was a sinner, turned his heart and repented. His reward; He was saved and became a descendent of Abraham, he became a follower of Jesus Christ, he became a Christian.

We need that similar moment in time to be changed, to be born again by the grace of GOD, to receive the Spirit of GOD....and only then we will be able to serve GOD, to serve others..... to have a Testimony!!!....then only we will learn to be a blessing to others.

Lord Jesus, we thank you for your love , your power in us, that same power that GOD used to resurrect and take you to heaven. Thank you that this power, with the help of the Spirit of God, makes us strong in times that we are weak. Please transform us to come aware of YOU in our life, to not want our own will, not to place ourselves first. Lord Jesus, by YOUR power in us, please please be the power of our live, of salvation in us. We pray for this in the wonderful name of Jesus Christ. Amen

2Co 9:12 What you do to serve others not only provides for the needs of God's people, but also produces more and more prayers of thanksgiving to God.


Have a wonderful, blessed weekend.

Tuesday 20 April 2010

Professional Inspirations #15: Mammon

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

BE AWARE OF MAMMON

Mat 6:24 "No one can serve two masters. He will hate the first master and love the second, or he will be devoted to the first and despise the second. You cannot serve God and wealth.

The People's New Testament commentary;
Mammon originally meant trust, or confidence, and riches is the trust of worldly men.

The Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary
If God be not the object of supreme trust, something else will be, and it is more likely to be money.

God requires the whole heart, and will not share it with the world.

He who holds to the world and loves it, must despise God; he who loves God, must give up the friendship of the world.

These are harsh views and have left myself with many questions, and I can gladly admit that the LORD is giving me some sence of discernment.

Not to long ago me and my wife were window shopping, walked into Woolworth's, saw a pair of shoes on sale, nearly bought it, but decided against buying it because "I already had a pair of brown shoes that can last a while longer"
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How many a time have many, probably most of us decided against proritizing buying something because of worldly / material gain (or not)?
vs.
How many times lately have we consciously weighed up spending our money, and decided against doing it purely based on spiritual considerations?

I found the following verse...interesting is it not?

Ecc 2:26 GW God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy to anyone who pleases him. But to the person who continues to sin, he gives the job of gathering and collecting wealth. The sinner must turn his wealth over to the person who pleases God. Even this is pointless. It's like trying to catch the wind.

Jesus came to the world to, from within GOD, and trough the spiritual gifts from GOD (1Co 12:8-10), to reach out to people and to bless them. When Jesus left, he left this work to be performed by each Christian. Through the working of the Holy Spirit all Christians are bounded into one spiritual body i.e. the Church.

We need to learn to make place for the Holy Spirit to be able to function spiritually. Therefore; Luk 9:23 He (Jesus) said to all of them, "Those who want to come with me must say no to the things they want, pick up their crosses every day, and follow me.

Then of course...

A time ( in personal spiritual growth ) should come when all of us Christians should realize that wealth and and money is not the priority of life here on earth. Mat 6:20-21 But keep on storing up treasures for yourselves in heaven, where moths and rust do not destroy and where thieves do not break in and steal. (21) For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

This was a difficult topic for me. Do we stop working? Stop prioritizing what we do at work? Stop committing ourselves to our work?

Certainly not. I believe the question lies in in the BALANCE that we maintain in life.

We can work, but give GOD the honour,
We can achieve, and thank GOD,
We can earn money, and give GOD what He is entitled to.

Is that not prioritizing GOD first AND then working in His eternal peace?

Friday 16 April 2010

Have a BLESSED weekend

Hi all,
May you have a blessed weekend.

I pray for our Lord Jesus to bless you and your family with His grace. Blessed be your health, your work , your emotions, your personal relations and BLESSED be your relationship with GOD, with Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. I pray for this relationship to be an intimate relationship driven from your heart . I pray for this to become your HEARTS DESIRE.
AMEN


Jas 1:13-17 GW
(13) When someone is tempted, he shouldn't say that God is tempting him. God can't be tempted by evil, and God doesn't tempt anyone.
(14) Everyone is tempted by his own desires as they lure him away and trap him.
(15) Then desire becomes pregnant and gives birth to sin. When sin grows up, it gives birth to death.
(16) My dear brothers and sisters, don't be fooled.
(17) Every good present and every perfect gift comes from above, from the Father who made the sun, moon, and stars. The Father doesn't change like the shifting shadows produced by the sun and the moon.


The above verses keeps me, my mind, my needs, my will, my desires; ...aligned with the will of GOD...keeps me going..

Thursday 15 April 2010

Professional Inspirations #14: Think BIG

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

THINK BIG

Deu 10:21 He is your glory. He is your God, who did for you these spectacular and awe-inspiring deeds you saw with your own eyes.

A few years a group salesmen went to a Regional Sales Convention n Chicago.

They had assured their wives that they would be home in plenty of time for the Friday night's dinner. In their rush to board the plane - with tickets and briefcases - one of these salesmen inadvertently kicked over a table which held a display of apples. Apples flew everywhere!

Without stopping or looking back, they all managed to reach the plane in time for their nearly missed boarding. ALL BUT ONE !!! He paused, took a deep breath, got in touch with his feelings, and experienced a twinge of compassion for the girl whose apple-stand had been overturned. He told his buddies to go on without him, waved goodbye, told one of them to call his wife when they arrived at their home destination and explain his taking a later flight.

Then he returned to the terminal where the apples were scattered all over the terminal floor. He was glad he did! The 16 year old girl was totally blind! She was softly crying, tears running down her cheeks in frustration, and at the same time helplessly groping for her spilled produce as the crowd swirled about her, no one stopping and no one to care for her plight.

The salesman knelt on the floor with her, gathered up the apples, put them back on the table and helped organize her display. As he did this, he noticed that many of them had become battered and bruised. These he set aside in another basket. When he had finished, he pulled out his walled and said to the girl, "Here, please take this $40 for the damage we did. Are you okay?

"She nodded through her tears. He continued, "I hope we didn't spoil your day too much."

As the salesman started to walk away, the bewildered blind girl called out to him, "Mister..." He paused and turned to look back into those blind eyes.

She continued, "Are you Jesus?"

He stopped in mid-stride, and wondered. Then slowly he made his way to catch the later flight with that question burning and bouncing in his soul: "Are you Jesus?"

Do people mistake you for Jesus?

That's our destiny, is it not?

To be so much like Jesus that people cannot tell the difference as we live and interact with a world that is blind to His love, life and grace.

If we claim to know Him, we should live, walk and act as He would.

Knowing Him is more than simply quoting Scripture and going to church.

It's actually living the Word ---THINKING BIG---as life unfolds day to day!!

Lord Father in heaven, please make us aware and experience Your power that You used to raise Jesus from the dead. This power is available to us, to be used, to rely on, to grow by in Spirit. Thank you Lord, that we can have faith in the risen Jesus Christ, knowing thereby that we DO have eternal life. Amen

1Co15:19-20 If we have set our hopes on Christ in this life only, we deserve more pity than any other people. (20) But at this moment Christ stands risen from the dead, the first one offered in the harvest of those who have died.

Professional Inspirations #13: The claims of life, every day

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

THE CLAIMS OF LIFE TODAY, EVERY DAY

Rom 8:37 The one who loves us gives us an overwhelming victory in all these difficulties.

Fil Anderson writes in his book: Running on Empty;

"For most of my life, I have been overwhelmed by the distractions of busyness, noise and hurry. Now I know GOD did not design my life to run on empty"

Fil also imagines himself being an airplane leaving the airport. Everyone is awed at this beautiful and fast airplane. No one however actually knows that there is a serious fault with the engine and that the airplane will crash a few hours later.

Are you a person that is is looked up to, admired by all, but deep deep inside you are tired and exhausted? Just ready to collapse?

Are you gauged by your capacity to go, go, go, go.....?.

One of the qualities to grow spiritually is to seek quietness.

To seek quietness is to to seek an intimate relationship.

To have a quality relationship with your spouse, sons, daughters and friends etc. needs attention and time!

To have a quality relationship with GOD, needs attention and time!

Elijah was at one time afraid that his life might be taken and fled to save himself. He was instructed to appear before GOD on a mountain;
(1Ki 19:10) He answered, "LORD God of Armies, I have eagerly served you. The Israelites have abandoned your promises, torn down your altars, and executed your prophets. I'm the only one left, and they're trying to take my life."
(1Ki 19:11) God said, "Go out and stand in front of the LORD on the mountain." As the LORD was passing by, a fierce wind tore mountains and shattered rocks ahead of the LORD. But the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind came an earthquake. But the LORD wasn't in the earthquake.
(1Ki 19:12) After the earthquake there was a fire. But the LORD wasn't in the fire. And after the fire there was a quiet, whispering voice.
(1Ki 19:13) When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his coat, went out, and stood at the entrance of the cave. Then the voice said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"


Life is compared to the wind, earthquakes and fire

They are symbols of our life today, we chase through our days program, shopping, children, travelling, work, church etc. etc. These are all symbols of wind, earthquakes and fire....but still.....

GOD patiently wait for our attention in the calmness / quietness after all the rush i.e. After the wind came an earthquake. But the LORD wasn't in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was a fire. But the LORD wasn't in the fire. And after the fire there was a quiet, whispering voice.

What to do?

Take time to spend in His presence, seek him diligently and be blessed!!!!

Psa 42:5 Why are you discouraged, my soul? Why are you so restless? Put your hope in God, because I will still praise him. He is my savior and my God.

Friday 9 April 2010

Professional Inspirations #12: Christ and our purpose

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

CHRIST AND THE PURPOSE OF YOUR LIFE

Psa 37:5 Entrust your ways to the LORD. Trust him, and he will act on your behalf.

Pro 16:1-7 GW The plans of the heart belong to humans, but an answer on the tongue comes from the LORD.
(2) A person thinks all his ways are pure, but the LORD weighs motives.
(3) Entrust your efforts to the LORD, and your plans will succeed.
(4) The LORD has made everything for his own purpose, even wicked people for the day of trouble.
(5) Everyone with a conceited heart is disgusting to the LORD. Certainly, such a person will not go unpunished.
(6) By mercy and faithfulness, peace is made with the LORD. By the fear of the LORD, evil is avoided.
(7) When a person's ways are pleasing to the LORD, he makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.


Can we really plan our own purpose in life? If the LORD made all for his own purpose, even wicked people, then we will need to realize that we must entrust our efforts to the Lord. Then indeed, as the LORD is righteous, then our plans will succeed....if it is according to His will.

Does this purpose include pain and suffering?.....By fear of the Lord, evil is avoided........all we need to do is to be faithful in trusting the Lord.

What better example than Jesus Christ?

1Pe 2:23 When he (Jesus Christ) was insulted, he did not retaliate. When he suffered, he did not threaten but made it his habit to commit the matter to the one who judges fairly.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary
Prov 16:1 The renewing grace of God alone prepares the heart for every good work. This teaches us that we are not sufficient of ourselves to think or speak any thing wise and good. 2. Ignorance, pride, and self-flattery render us partial judges respecting our own conduct. 3. Roll the burden of thy care upon God, and leave it with him, by faith and dependence on him.

Tuesday 6 April 2010

Professional inspirations #11 - Relax..

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

RELAX WHEN WORKING

Ecc 2:26 God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy to anyone who pleases him. But to the person who continues to sin, he gives the job of gathering and collecting wealth. The sinner must turn his wealth over to the person who pleases God. Even this is pointless. It's like trying to catch the wind.

Ecclesiastes is concerned with imparting wisdom and knowledge to the people of God and teaching them to fear the Lord.

The book begins and ends with the exclamation, “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity” (Ecc 1:2; 12:8). While “vanity” is obviously a key word throughout the book, when applied to human undertakings or the pleasures and joys of earthly life, it indicates that “the present form of this world is passing away” (1 Cor 7:31) and it expresses frustration, anger, or sorrow; applied to the search for understanding of all things, therefore this book presents itself as primarily a quest to “figure out” all of life.

The joy and the frustration of work.

God gave Adam work to accomplish prior to the fall (Gen 2:15),but part of the punishment of his sin was that it would become painful toil (Gen 3:17-19). Do we not find our work to be both satisfying as well as aggravating?

The grateful enjoyment of God's good gifts.

We should not be blind to the beauty of the world God created (Ecc 3:11) or be caused to despise God's good gifts of human relationships, food, drink, and satisfying labor. These are to be received humbly and enjoyed fully as blessings from God.

The fear of God.

The fact that “all is vanity” should drive us to take refuge in GOD whose work endures forever and who is a “rock” for those who take shelter in him i.e. to GOD , nothing can be added. The absolute sovereignty of GOD and his purpose is meant to bring us to a sense of humble reverence and awe of him

1Co 7:31 Those who use the things in this world should do so but not depend on them. It is clear that this world in its present form is passing away.

Relax = slow down = let go.

So just maybe we should relax in what we do, keeping mind that we should always enjoy what we have been given to manage.

Wednesday 31 March 2010

Professional inspirations #10 - Reflect..

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

REFLECT

Rev 2:4-6 GW However, I have this against you: The love you had at first is gone. (5) Remember how far you have fallen. Return to me and change the way you think and act, and do what you did at first....

I reflected on my path with the Lord this last year. I remembered my first Passover experience last year, the fact that we were camping, the experience of holding our own Lord's Supper, just reflecting on what we are...children of GOD, only possible through Jesus Christ. Joh 14:6 Jesus answered him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one goes to the Father except through me.

740 years BC this view of the coming Messiah was recorded.

Isa 52:13-15 GW My servant (the Messiah i.e. Jesus) will be successful. He will be respected, praised, and highly honored.
(14) Many will be shocked by him. His appearance will be so disfigured that he won't look like any other man. His looks will be so disfigured that he will hardly look like a human.
(15) He will cleanse many nations with his blood. Kings will shut their mouths because of him. They will see things that they had never been told. They will understand things that they had never heard.


Today (2260 years later) we have the privilege to be able to know this fact to be true.

Thank You Lord Jesus that I do understand what you have done for me.Thank you Holy Spirit for leading me to reflect, honour, praise, worship you Lord Jesus our Saviour. Amen

Monday 29 March 2010

Professional inspirations #9 - There is no easy way out...

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

THERE IS NO EASY WAY OUT

To plan to gain or not gain something is a mindset that can be either negative (i.e. the mind of a sluggard) or positive (i.e. the mind of the Righteous). These types of mindsets (including the mindset of a thief (Pro 1:10-19) is set out in Proverbs.

Read more about the sluggard or the Righteous (and the Proverbs related verses) in: http://ourfathershome.com/sermons/Prevailing%20Kingdom%20mindset%20-%2013.06.2009%20Cliff%20Jones.doc
Acknowledgements given to: Dr. Jonathan David – Market place invasion

A definition of mindset is follows;
1. A fixed mental attitude or disposition that predetermines a person's responses to and interpretations of situations, or
2. An inclination or a habit.

The mindset of a sluggard

It is a spirit, a mindset that attacks you when you become comfortable – you yield to the negative force and emotions around you i.e. you have a - “I am a victim” mentality. Pro 14:23 In hard work there is always something gained, but idle talk leads only to poverty.

– If you join with them (sluggards) you will be in trouble and if you are like that (a sluggard) you are already in trouble.

The mind of the Righteous (a person in right standing with GOD)

– can only be a child of GOD, You?

Your thinking patterns must be set in such a way and into a position that you can be blessed continually by GOD. Your mind must be renewed more and more like the mind of Christ – 1Co 2:14-16 GW A person who isn't spiritual doesn't accept the teachings of God's Spirit. He thinks they're nonsense. He can't understand them because a person must be spiritual to evaluate them. (15) Spiritual people evaluate everything but are subject to no one's evaluation. (16) "Who has known the mind of the Lord so that he can teach him?" However, we have the mind of Christ.

What to do when we have a difficult task?

Are we not frustrated because we look for wisdom, abilities and strengths in ourselves?

Remember this; GOD will never call you to do anything that you cannot do! GOD does not seek capable people, HE forms those He calls to be capable!

When Peter saw Jesus walking on the sea, Peter asked Jesus to order him to come to Jesus also by walking on the sea, which he did!. Why did he then start to sink? Because he failed in himself i.e. he had little faith, he looked for the strength in himself! Mat 14:28-30 GW Peter answered, "Lord, if it is you, order me to come to you on the water." (29) Jesus said, "Come!" So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus. (30) But when he noticed how strong the wind was, he became afraid and started to sink. He shouted, "Lord, save me!"

Is there thus a easy way out?

Yes indeed there is.

If we have faith, grow in faith, excel in faith, we become a person more and more having the mind of Christ. We are then reliant on the wisdom, abilities and strengths through Jesus. We need to be less of ourselves, and more of Jesus. From the strength of Jesus and through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit we will, we can, approach anything with ease and peace.

Heavenly Father, thank you for knowing that you never change. That your love for us is for ever and ever. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for knowing that through you, we can and will achieve all that we want to; by faith in you, by your wisdom and your strength we will be capable to do anything. Use us, make us aware of you, make us aware of what you want from us. Holy Spirit, please make us faithful, trusting GOD every minute of every day. Amen.

Wednesday 24 March 2010

Professional inspirations #8 - If a difficult task awaits you...

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

IF AN DIFFICULT TASKS AWAITS YOU..

People tend work harder when they know that a difficult and demanding task is awaiting them in near future, a new study claimed calling it a 'get ready mindset'.

According to a new study published in the Journal of Consumer Research, the more difficult a future task was expected to be, the harder people worked on a current task because of "get ready mindset".

"It seems reasonable to expect that when people know that they will have to work hard on a future task, they will devote less effort to the current task, in order to save energy for the upcoming demanding task. This is not what we found," said lead author Hans Baumgartner from Pennsylvania State University.

In a series of five studies, the authors observed that the more difficult a future task was expected to be, the harder people worked on a current task.

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/People-work-harder-when-about-to-face-difficult-task/543639

2Co 2:16 To some people we are a deadly fragrance, while to others we are a life-giving fragrance. ....

It is for certain true that a new year, every new year brings us new challenges and it is most certainly not always downhill. There will be times when we all have to make difficult decisions or have to complete a task that takes up all our strength and talents, testing it to the limits.

When we accepted Jesus Christ as our Redeemer, we are promised a new live trough Him. 2Co 5:17 GW Whoever is a believer in Christ is a new creation. The old way of living has disappeared. A new way of living has come into existence.

We do not however know what to expect from Him, what task He will give us. Luckily for us, Jesus knew He needed to give us help Joh 16:7 However, I am telling you the truth: It's good for you that I'm going away. If I don't go away, the helper won't come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.

Maybe we should not focus on the grade of difficulty, but focus to ask the Holy Spirit to lead us? Ask the Holy Spirit to give us wisdom and insight to deal with the task at hand. Through the power of Jesus Christ and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit we will then be able to achieve anything, any difficult task.

This way we will then be able to approach work and all tasks , PRAYING and deeply dependent on the POWER of Jesus Christ!

Rom 7:6 But now we have died to those laws that bound us. God has broken their effect on us so that we are serving in a new spiritual way, not in an old way dictated by written words.

Holy Teacher, thought the power of your Holy Spirit, I will aim to do any tasks that you may give me and complete in in your Name. Amen.

Thursday 18 March 2010

Professional inspirations #7 - Approach the future with a purpose

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

APPROACH THE FUTURE WITH A PURPOSE

Ambitious people know what they want and are prepared to do all to achieve their goals. They are prepared to offer all their time, health, family life, social life any money to achieve these goals. They are motivated, energized and proud in what they achieve....... Is this you?

Perhaps you are not that ambitious, but still you have your own goals? Are you not planning ahead on a daily basis? What to do on easter weekend ( possibly saving for this a month or two)? Planning to buy a new car / house sometime / next year / later? Planning what to do when you retire? etc. etc.....Are we not again motivated, exited, happy in achieving these goals?

(From the ESV Study Bible Notes) Proverbs 1: 2-6 give the purpose and benefit of the book: it instills wisdom in the reader. The wisdom offered here is practical (instruction in wise dealing), intellectual (increase in learning), moral (righteousness, justice, and equity), and probing (to understand a proverb and . . . riddles). It is for all people, be they naive and ignorant (the simple . . . the youth) or already experienced (Let the wise hear).

In either being ambitious i.e. spending all your time in achieving your goals, or just being focussed on your own personal priorities and goals, if we do this through Jesus, then we have the promise that Jesus will smoothen our ways. Pro 3:6 In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths smooth.

A different approach to planning the future

i.e. think about this; Why did Jesus come to live on earth? Joh 1:14 The Word became human and lived among us. We saw his glory. It was the glory that the Father shares with his only Son, a glory full of kindness and truth.

Recently I heard the following simple explanation: Jesus came to earth to seek humans, to seek you and me! Rom 8:24 We were saved with this hope in mind. If we hope for something we already see, it's not really hope. Who hopes for what can be seen?

Jesus also left with the following promise (our hope): Joh 14:2-3 GW My Father's house has many rooms. If that were not true, would I have told you that I'm going to prepare a place for you? (3) If I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again. Then I will bring you into my presence so that you will be where I am.

Revelations is the prophesy of Jesus's return. In Rev 22: 17 the simple word "Come” is a prayer addressed to Jesus, who promises to come soon. Here it is an invitation to the spiritually thirsty, to take the water of life without price, for it is freely provided by God's grace. Rev 22:17 The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" Let those who hear this say, "Come!" Let those who are thirsty come! Let those who want the water of life take it as a gift.

The Spirit and the bride say 'Come"....

The bride (thats us) and the Spirit whom lives in us ( we cannot be separated, we are not separated) should call out to Jesus to "Come"!!!!

We should live our lives, plan our lives, prioritize our lives; every month, every week, every day, every minute,. Plan what we want to achieve considering that what is really really important. Mat 6:19-20 GW "Stop storing up treasures for yourselves on earth, where moths and rust destroy and thieves break in and steal. (20) Instead, store up treasures for yourselves in heaven, where moths and rust don't destroy and thieves don't break in and steal.

Will this not, should this not... alter our planning, our goals?

Should we not approach the future with the purpose to meet Jesus?!!!

Tuesday 16 March 2010

Professional Inspirations #6 - Work and Pray

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

WORK AND PRAY or is it PRAY AND WORK?

Joh 5:19 Jesus said to the Jews, "I can guarantee this truth: The Son cannot do anything on his own. He can do only what he sees the Father doing. Indeed, the Son does exactly what the Father does."

Have you ever thought about a typical day in Jesus' life? Perhaps He might have had questions like these, "What will I do today? Who am I going to heal today? Who will I visit today? Who will I bless today?" . The demands on Jesus' time were great. Yet we see that Jesus allocated His time very deliberately. We don't get the idea that Jesus was flustered or stressed from the activity He was involved in. His life appeared to have a BALANCE of quiet moments, work and active ministry into the lives He came in contact with.

How do we determine what we will be involved in each day of our lives?

What keeps us in sync with the will of our heavenly Father for the daily tasks He calls us to? Jesus tells us that He was only involved in those things the Father was involved in. Nothing more, nothing less. So often we determine our participation in an activity based on whether we have the time to do it or whether we desire to participate.

The real question we should ask is, "Does the Father want me to participate in this activity?"

We have already discussed our work in this regard. Remember this? Col 3:23 Whatever you do, do it wholeheartedly as though you were working for your real master (Jesus) and not merely for humans.

Other than at work, during work have you had similar questions as these that follow?

"Lord, should I add this Bible study to my schedule? Should I spend an extra night out on this committee this week? Should I take on new business that will take me away from home more? Should my daughter be involved in music lessons?" etc. etc. Are these not the daily challenges of the world we now live in?. Are we not an activity-based society that often encourages more and more activity?

What to do?....Pray of course!

Our lives will become less cluttered, less stressful, and more fulfilling when we follow the model Jesus provided. It may not always please everyone. Jesus never sought to please everyone.

Ask the Lord each day this week how you and He are to spend your time. Yield your schedule to Him. Let Jesus direct your every activity. You may discover that He desires you to cut back some things in order to spend more time alone with Him. He will be faithful to show you. And you will become more fulfilled because you are centered in His will for you.

Mat 6:33 But first, be concerned about his kingdom and what has his approval. Then all these things will be provided for you.

Thursday 11 March 2010

Professional Inspirations #5 - Work and Family

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

WORK & FAMILY

Exo 20:9 You have six days to do all your work.

Do we not spend most of our life time at work to provide a living for our family? i.e. spending a lot of time and energy trying to earn enough money to pay for the home mortgage, the bills and to buy the things our family needs?

Is it not then also true that by the time we've finished working, there's barely enough time left at the end of the day, week, month to actually spend time with the family we're working so hard for.

The key to a simple life filled with love and joy is to build a work life balance that doesn't exclude those people nearest to your heart. 1Ti 5:8 If anyone doesn't take care of his own relatives, especially his immediate family, he has denied the Christian faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

Join together as a family in prayer and ask God for some guidance as you begin to develop your plan for a healthy work/life balance.

Look for ways you can find pleasure and joy from the simple things in life and you'll find your priorities begin changing all on their own.

Rom 12:9-10 GW Love sincerely. Hate evil. Hold on to what is good. (10) Be devoted to each other like a loving family. Excel in showing respect for each other

Finish Strong!!

Enjoy the day. Many many blessings I pray the Lord does grant you.

Tuesday 9 March 2010

Profesional Inspirations #4 - GOD works through you

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

GOD WORKS THROUGH YOU

For GOD to be able to use you and me, we need to seek Him first and then GOD will find us, use us!

Heb 11:6 No one can please God without faith. Whoever goes to God must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

1Ch 16:11 Seek the LORD and his strength, seek his face continually.

Seeking God's face means in fact seeking his heart. God promises me and you: "You will seek Me and find Me, when you seek me with all your heart" i.e. Jer 29:13-14 GW When you look for me, you will find me. When you wholeheartedly seek me, (14) I will let you find me, declares the LORD......

But what do we really do most of the time? Do we not generally seek God for what He can do for us i.e. prayers to please heal, please give, please fix?

If we keep seeking GOD in this way, if we continue to hold on to earthly things; we most certainly will never ascend to the level of stepping into heavenly things.

We can't come face to face with God unless we
1.) humble ourselves,
2.) pray and
3.) turn from our wicked ways.
2Ch 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

We need to find out from Him what things in our lives are displeasing to Him.

We find what is "wicked" to God ( not according to the will of GOD) through prayer and reading His Word, allowing the Holy Spirit to reveal those things to us we need to get rid of.

If we do this,

THEN .....

we will find GOD,

and THEN

GOD will start to work thru us!!! Php 2:13 It is God who produces in you the desires and actions that please him.

Friday 5 March 2010

Professional Inspirations #3 - Job Statisfaction

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

Carpe Diem - seize the weekend and glorify Jesus!! Be joyfull!!!!

Have a blessed weekend


JOB SATISFACTION


Jesus explains that there is a thief in our midst who works hard to obscure and impede the only real path to an abundant, meaningful life. He said, "A thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy. But I came so that my sheep will have life and so that they will have everything they need. " (Joh 10:10 )

Indeed, God is our real employer because ultimately, He provides all of our needs. God told the ancient Israelites in Deuteronomy 8:18, "But remember the LORD your God is the one who makes you wealthy. .."

If we are working for God, we can bring an attitude of enthusiasm and cheer to our workplace even if we have a supervisor or fellow workers who are difficult to work with (1 Peter 2:18-19).

When work becomes boring, then our inspiration and joy in working disappears and we most certainly become negative i.e. are you stressed out? Refer this survey; http://www.health24.com/medical/Condition_centres/777-792-3728-3731,29558.asp

Maybe we dont give ourselves enough time to rest, to relax, spend time with the family or to take vacation?

Just maybe we are not putting Christ first in our lives?

To follow Jesus is to put Him first, to put him in that very centre part of our lives, and too often, we don’t really give Jesus that spot.

This is not to say we don’t love Him or we don’t honour Him, but it’s just that we often put other things first i.e relationships, career plans, money, our basic primary needs. It is often those things that occupy our hearts! Mat 6:21 Your heart will be where your treasure is.

Ecc 2:24-26 GW There is nothing better for people to do than to eat, drink, and find satisfaction in their work. I saw that even this comes from the hand of God. (25) Who can eat or enjoy themselves without God? (26) God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy to anyone who pleases him.....

Holy Spirit, You are the Spirit of Truth. Remind us to live, work, to do what we do for Jesus Christ. Lead us to live Jesus Christ as our first priority in life. Thank you Lord GOD, for knowing that You will then give us joy; joy in spirit, joy in work, joy in life. In Jesus name we pray this. Amen

Wednesday 3 March 2010

Professional Inspirations #2 - Manage pressure with Jesus

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

MANAGE THE PRESSURE TOGETHER WITH JESUS

Rom 8:31 What can we say about all of this? If God is for us, who can be against us?

Probably the most effective technique to get a handle on the stress in is to turn to Jesus. God designed you and me in a way that our spirit, mind and body would react together in a marvellous way when we feel tense and anxious and “heavy” and set our heart and mind on Jesus.

How do we “Come to Jesus?”

Pray, listen to inspirational music. Sit or walk quietly and listen for His voice. Cry out to Him in desperation. Read His Word, the Bible. Get on your knees and pour out your heart to Him.
Do this, and Jesus promises that He will give us rest.

Mat 11:28-30 GW "Come to me, all who are tired from carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest. (29) Place my yoke over your shoulders, and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble. Then you will find rest for yourselves (30) because my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

Lord Jesus, I pray for Your voice to fill our souls. I pray Jesus, to make us aware of You, every minute of every day. We honor and praise you Father GOD, we love you Lord Jesus, Holy Spirit we ask your continued guidance in us. Amen

Have a GREAT day!!!

Monday 1 March 2010

Professional inspirations #1 - Are you happy in your work?

Psa 25:4-5 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths. (5) Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

ARE YOU HAPPY IN YOUR WORK?

I have heard many a times the following words; " If I could have my life over again, I will definitely have been doing a much more satisfying job" , I believe I myself had these thoughts once or twice in my lifetime. In fact, I have switched jobs more than once just for that purpose.

Sometimes we find work to be repetitive, boring, a must do? At times we are pressurized into unrealistic goals and due dates?

Am I? are You? are we happy in our work?

Maybe, just maybe, we should just take the time to see the big picture?

Col 1:16 He (Jesus Christ) created all things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible. Whether they are kings or lords, rulers or powers- everything has been created through him and for him.

It is for certain a privilege to be employed and we should acknowledge that all we are and all we have, has been received by the Lord.

Thank Him through prayer, ask Him through the Holy Spirit to lead your thoughts, to supply you with what you need, do not just pray what you want.

Do that every day and allow the Holy Spirit to make you aware of the holy calling you have been given.

Work then, through the power of the Lord, to His honour, as if you are working for the Lord himself e.g. do not just be a breadwinner! Col 3:23 Whatever you do, do it wholeheartedly as though you were working for your real master (Jesus) and not merely for humans.

For certain then, one after the other happy and exciting working day, week, month will follow.

Lord, I want to undertake everything I do,
as if I am doing it for You,
through Your power, and to honour You.
Amen


Bless you, in the wonderful name of Jesus Christ, the Messiah, our Saviour.

Professional inspirations invite

Jesus to his disciples;
(Joh 16:32-33) The time is coming, and is already here, when all of you will be scattered. Each of you will go your own way and leave me all alone. Yet, I'm not all alone, because the Father is with me. (33) I've told you this so that my peace will be with you. In the world you'll have trouble. But cheer up! I have overcome the world."


Directed at his disciples but also applicable to each of us? Is it not that we are in Jesus and Jesus is in us?
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Each of us want to be successful. Being successful is not just about status and money, but also about giving honour to GOD for having income, security , success & status.


I have found a suite of inspirations as how to work but also be focused on the GOD's grace and influence in our professional life.

Monday 8 February 2010

My sons

Its been a long time, however, not an inactive growth in knowledge this year. For more than twenty years I have been blind, living in the dark. Today, I am blessed with insights into the truth, insights and believe in Jesus Christ.



For more than a year I have been dealing with a colleague, just talking, just communicating the truth. Our discussions lead to me last week realizing him being attached to the Old Apostolic Church, with in turn lead me the to an investigation into the believes of the Old Apostolic Church.



To my dismay , I realize now that I have caused a terrible event when I divorsed my ex twenty years ago; I left my youngest son Eugene ( 2 years), second youngest Enrico( 7 years ) and oldest son Francois (11 years ) in the care and upbringing of the Apostolic believes.


I have wept, I have aked GOD for forgiveness, I have asked GOD for guidence as how to save my sons. One thought came up today, just be a witness!
The following is thus an email I put together and forwarded to my sons, with the trust that the Spirit of GOD will eventually lead them back to his kingdom.

Lord Father, please, please , please soften my sons hearts, them and their wife's, make them spirtiully ware of your grace, your love, your everlasting life, only vailable by believe in Jesus Christ. Thank you Jesus, by and through Your wonderfull name only. Amen.


I found a summary on http://www.faithequip.co.za giving a spot on view of what a "Christian believes" should be, .....what I believe, .....and what I pray for all of you to experience.

Eph 2:8-10 GW
(8) God saved you through faith as an act of kindness. You had nothing to do with it. Being saved is a gift from God.
(9) It's not the result of anything you've done, so no one can brag about it.
(10) God has made us what we are. He has created us in Christ Jesus to live lives filled with good works that he has prepared for us to do.


It it not awesome to know that no one on earth can do it for you, that no human being , other than you, accepting Jesus as your Saviour, can give you life, that is; give you eternal live.

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WHAT WE BELIEVE
We believe there is one God eternally existing in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; that all three possess equally all the same attributes, nature, perfections, and characteristics of personality. God alone is to be worshipped as prescribed in Scripture.

We believe in the full deity of the Lord Jesus Christ. We believe that the man Jesus Christ was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He possesses both a divine and human nature, distinct and unmixed. Jesus Christ was without sin, He died a penal substitution for the sin of all men, providing atonement for all men, but it is applied only to those who believe. He was buried and He rose on the third day. He ascended to the right hand of God the Father, now interceding as High Priest for all believers.

We believe in the personality and deity of the Holy Spirit; that He is the infallible author and interpreter of the Word; that He convicts, regenerates, indwells, empowers, instructs, and guides the believer in living, service, and worship through His gifts; that in this age He baptizes and permanently indwells and seals all believers into one body; that His chief purpose is to witness and glorify Christ.

We believe that the Scriptures are the inspired Word of God; that inspiration of the original autographs was plenary and verbal and, hence, the sixty-six books of the Bible are inerrant; that it is the sole authority for faith and practice in all matters to which it speaks.

We believe that man was created in the image of God; that he fell through sin and lost his spiritual life; that he is dead in his trespasses and sins and, hence, is totally depraved.
We believe that salvation is wholly a work of God's free grace and not the work of man in whole or in part, nor due to man's goodness or religious ceremony; that it is a gift to man received by personal faith at which time the righteousness of Christ is imputed to the sinner, thereby justifying him in God's sight.

We hold to believers’ baptism.

We hold to a pre-millennium return of Christ at which time He will establish His millennium Kingdom on earth.

Tuesday 12 January 2010

Lets encourage each other ( for 2010 )

Heb 10:25 We should not stop gathering together with other believers, as some of you are doing. Instead, we must continue to encourage each other even more as we see the day of the Lord coming.

I really really believe that I was given the opportunity by GOD to share my passion fro the Living Word to you all in different ways. Certainly He has given me means and methods to put together a lot to share with you this year.

Heb 3:14 After all, we will remain Christ's partners only if we continue to hold on to our original confidence until the end. ....In God's mind we are never successful if we stop somewhere along the way. He wants us to finish our course and do it with joy! If you have been tempted recently to give up---dont! If you dont finish the thing you are currently involved in, you will face the same challenges in the next thing you start. Some people spend all their lives starting new things and never finishing anything. Let us make a decision that we will be more than people who never reached their full potential. excert from New Day New You by Joyce Meyer

I have read where the bible originated from..fascinating!.

Did you now that money is referenced to more than 2000 times within the bible? Money is important to GOD, not to us, but to HIM!..Talk about taking up the cross!

I have a passion to find out more of the Holy Spirit. How to grow in the Spirit, How we have received the Spirit, are filled with the Spirit, how we are baptized with the Spirit, how we experience the spirit during Pentecost etc ect. There is many many ways to experience the Spirit in our lives!!!

So lets do it!!!!

Please, please, please Lord GOD, make us willing to share the love of Jesus, make us aware of the power of your almighty self through the Holy Spirit during this year to the fullest. Amen.