Reset and Recalibrate

Staying healthy and whole or working towards wholeness in isolation.

Some people are home and loving it, the extra time because they don't have to travel, the new hobbies or crafts or whatever they are now finding time to do so relaxing etc etc.

Then there are the parents who I know love their kids like crazy - some love having them around - spending time etc. - others are struggling with a whole new set of routines - one mum told me that between her own studies and that of her kids, she's had to learn a number of different educational platforms to find where the work is and how to access it etc. So no rest and relaxation there.

For those who are no longer working - there is a whole lot of unexpected challenges relating to finance etc. How to fill time, missing colleagues, missing friends.

So in the midst of this - how do we maintain our well-being and work towards wholeness and wellness in our lives.

Wellness
what are we doing to stay well

wellness
noun
the state of being in good health, especially as an actively pursued goal.
"measures of a patient's progress toward wellness

What is the difference between wellness and wellbeing.

According to psychology today
Well-being is the experience of health, happiness, and prosperity. It includes having good mental health, high life satisfaction, a sense of meaning or purpose, and ability to manage stress. More generally, well-being is just feeling well

So in the midst of uncertainty, when anxiety is high, we might have a level of wellness, but our well-being may be struggling.

I certainly don't have an the answers. The situation is different for us all. The stresses and pressures are different. Staying in contact with friends and loved ones, though possible through FaceTime options, is not the same.

I have struggled with my own well-being over the years (including now) but here's some thoughts, ideas and tips that I've used, and might be useful for you too, in managing life at the moment, and setting a new direction towards well-being.

Isaiah 43

Isaiah 43:15-19NLT
I am the LORD, your Holy One, Israel's Creator and King. [16] I am the LORD, who opened a way through the waters, making a dry path through the sea. [17] I called forth the mighty army of Egypt with all its chariots and horses. I drew them beneath the waves, and they drowned, their lives snuffed out like a smoldering candlewick. [18] "But forget all that- it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. [19] For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.

I love this scripture. God always seems top highlight it to me at moments of change and challenge.

What can we learn.
God is doing a new thing - forget the past - forgetting the past - not living in past glories- past victories - be open to the new thing that God is doing.

He tells the the people of Israel - see I'm doing a new thing, can you perceive it, it has already begun.

I think there is a strong tendency in us to think backwards to what was (pre lockdown) instead of forward to what could be and then recognising that it's in the now, the thing that God is already doing that is important.

The people of Israel remembered the amazing things God had done for them. God basically says, don't focus on those things.

So for us, focusing on what life was like before isolation and lockdown isn't helpful.

We live in the now and not in the past
We are in a new season. A new way of living. Can we perceive it. Do we understand the times.

Are there things we actually don't want to go back to.

Are there things that are not actually helpful for us that we can leave behind.

Sometimes we feel good because we are busy, but spending our lives in busy nothings are not helpful. We look for happiness, but research suggests happiness is found not in the pursuit of happiness but in having some kind of purpose.

Eph 2:10 God's workmanship created to do the good works he planned in advance.

If we are too busy we can miss this.

Maybe this season is to redirect us to a new purpose in life. Maybe that purpose is to do less and in doing less, achieving more. One of the paradoxes of life.

I actually don't want to go back to the past - there are things I'm planning on not picking up again.

What if during this time we rethought what is truly important and made a decision to leave behind what was not?

What if God was deliberately removing some activities from our lives?

God works for the good

Romans 8:26-28 NLT
And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don't know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. [27] And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God's own will. [28] And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.

We can focus on what God is doing, even if we can't see it properly yet. We cam be confident that God is at work, even when we are not.

Prayers - deep groaning - when we are really troubled or unable to pray, at this time, let the Holy Spirit who is there to help us, let him take the burden in prayer. - feeling unsure, feeling fearful, let his Spirit take control.

God's desire for our well-being is important. He says let the Spirit of God take control. I'm in this, I'm working everything together for you and for your good.

So, some quick tips.

Reset - what is God speaking to us about where we can reset - priorities - What is really important.

We begin to discover, when all is taken away what is actually truly important to us.

Isaiah 43 - stop focusing on the past at what it was like, how it used to be.

Know the times, know the season. What season are we in. What season are we moving too. Is it time to do a reset to be ready for the new season that is already upon us.

Do a reset - on the phone - a reset removes everything on the phone - the extraneous pieces of information to start again, to renew and refresh. It removes the junk, the garbage and what you don't need or want anymore.

When we do a reset, we don't then fill our phones with the same old information.
Let's not fill up our lives with the same old stuff. We only put back on the equipment what we need and what is helpful.

We can choose to include in our lives, only what we need and is helpful for our well-being.

God says to the people, see it has already begun, can you not perceive it.

Is our perception today caught up in what was, what we think it should be, or is it perceiving the times and understanding the times.

As I mentioned earlier It is a new season and for some it is hard, for all sorts of reasons. But we can't go back to what was. We can find piece and rest in what is, by understanding the season, only taking what we know is helpful into the new season.

We can acknowledge the difficulties. They are real. We see them. Acknowledge them as reality, without dwelling on them and giving them power they don't have.

Recalibrate
We might benefit at this time by reflecting on where we might need a slight adjustment, a recalibration. Not a major change, an adjustment.

I think about my car - wheels out of alignment (maybe hit one to many kerbs) or it meds a mechanical service because of wear and tear.

It still drives but I know something is not quite right. It just doesn't feel or sound right.

It's not helpful to leave it with the wrong calibration. It does damage to wheels and to the workings of the car. The longer it stays that way, the more damage is done. So I take it to be recalibrated - weights right, angles right Engine and mechanical parts put right.


Is God asking us to use this time to bring recalibration?

What's God highlighting for us that has gotten out of kilter in our lives.

Are you struggling with thoughts, feeling isolated.

Please get help.
An holistic approach to your well-being is important. Organise to see your doctor, in case there are physical reasons underlying how you feel. Organise to see a counsellor, or psychologist to talk to, and work with them. All of these are important ways to bring recalibration.

One of the great things I have found through receiving this type of help, is that they are really good in helping me see where I might need to recalibrate, where my thinking is out of kilter, where my thoughts are being unhelpful.

The other go to is God's word.
God's word helps brings recalibration

When you recalibrate something, you don't second guess it. You check it against a standard.

What standards can we recalibrate against. Ron mentioned some last week - speak nicely to people. Col 4.

Here's a couple more for contemplation later.

1 Cor 13 - love - patient, kind, does not boast

1 Corinthians 13:4-7 NLT
Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud [5] or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. [6] It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. [7] Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.

Note: If you are in a relationship marked by violence and abuse. That is not love. You do not need to stay in that relationship. 

In a loving relationship we work on recalibrating our self, not others. 

Galatians puts this well.

Galatians 6:4-5 NLT
Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won't need to compare yourself to anyone else. [5] For we are each responsible for our own conduct.

Gal - get on with your own work instead of comparing yourself to others. So much angst in life come from comparing- home schooling is a case in point - on FB we see what others are doing - easy to compare. But remember, your kids are not their kids.

Mummas, you are all doing a great job with schooling your kids. They will be ok.

What recalibration might be necessary and important to you in this time? It will be different for everyone - your own well-being, your kids well-being etc.

Remember, recalibration is adjustment, for health, adjustment to promote well-being. Small steps, small changes.

Matthew 11:28-30 NLT
Then Jesus said, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. [29] Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. [30] For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light."

Interesting that the rest is both physical rest, and emotional rest - a refreshing to gather strength.

(Thayer's Definition
to cause or permit one to cease from any movement or labour in order to recover and collect his strength
to give rest, refresh, to give one's self rest, take rest
to keep quiet, of calm and patient expectation)

Are we taking time to find rest in Jesus, both physical rest and emotional rest.

How's my thinking - does it need recalibration

We don't have to entertain every thought that enters our head.

We can choose to let it go. We don't have to make it part of our ongoing thigh life.

Restore - time for reflection - restoration - putting in place for wellness and well-being

We can't do it all. That's ok. Parents - your kids will be ok even though you are schooling then at home at the moment.

We see many priorities changing around us.

We see lots of ways on FB about what we could be doing to enrich our lives at this time.

To be honest, I'm sick of seeing them. Because Maybe, just maybe, we don't have to. Maybe we find restoration, by simply reflecting and recalibrating what God highlights.

Stuff happens in life - we struggle finding peace in a busy distracted, overwhelming situation.

I'm my situation, I realised that there are some things I can do. I can reset, I can recalibrate. These things are helpful but as I reflect on psalm 23 we see God who restores the soul.

Restore -
He restores my soul
He leads me in green pastures
He makes me lie down

He restores.

A thought from Jill on wisdom from God's Word

Proverbs 3:7-8,15-18 NLT
Don't be impressed with your own wisdom. Instead, fear the LORD and turn away from evil. [8] Then you will have healing for your body and strength for your bones.

[15] Wisdom is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her. [16] She offers you long life in her right hand, and riches and honor in her left. [17] She will guide you down delightful paths; all her ways are satisfying. [18] Wisdom is a tree of life to those who embrace her; happy are those who hold her tightly.

Here we are told a couple of things about wisdom

1. Wisdom is precious, valuable and worth achieving as wisdom is a wonderful guide.

2. Though wisdom is valuable, don't be proud about it, or be impressed with your own wisdom. Instead,  be humble and let God guide your path.

This reminds me of some other verses about wisdom.

James tells us that true wisdom, comes from God. He delights to give us wisdom if we ask for it and trust God for it.

James 1:5-6 NLT
If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. [6] But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.

God will also guide us and let us know which path to take.

Isaiah 30:21 NLT
Your own ears will hear him. Right behind you a voice will say, "This is the way you should go," whether to the right or to the left.

The context of this verse is that Israel had wandered away from God. He waited for their return and promised them that when they came to him they could trust him to guide them, to lead them and to hear his voice telling them which way to go.

We too can trust God to guide us on the right path,  to give us wisdom when we need it, and to know how to move forward. He will tell us which way to go, and give us wisdom to make the right choice.

Finding God in the ordinary

I love going to Colour Conference and being encouraged by the speakers. It's been formative for many areas of my life. I love hanging out with the women,  meeting new people and hearing from God.

However one thing I have discovered. God's greatest revelations to me come in the quite still moments of my own personal life and devotion when I choose to open my heart to him.

We want the big moments and recognition but we don't all get prominence. What we do have is incredible significance because we are loved by God. Even Elijah found God in the still small moments.

It's in my own community and in the local context that we flourish and grow if we choose to. We look to the big moments, we seek the big moments, but it's actually the small moments, in the quiet places that God speaks and that God heals.

I want to be open to God wherever I am but I also want to be a person that looks for God in the everyday moments and opportunities that we are given to love people, to love my friends and to love my family. 

A thought from Jill

What a beautiful morning here at Colour Conference 2. It's been a blessing to be able to attend both of the conferences.

Reminds me that sometimes there are things ahead that we come across unexpectedly. I wasn't  expecting to be at both conferences  but God knew I'd be here again.

I've received so much and even though their may be things ahead that will cost us something (Colour and accommodation twice is not cheap) if we lean in to God we find that in return God speaks in amazing ways and directs our paths.

Have an awesome day.

Look to the future

Haggai 2:3-9 NLT
'Does anyone remember this house-this Temple-in its former splendor? How, in comparison, does it look to you now? It must seem like nothing at all! [4] But now the LORD says: Be strong, Zerubbabel. Be strong, Jeshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people still left in the land. And now get to work, for I am with you, says the LORD of Heaven's Armies. [5] My Spirit remains among you, just as I promised when you came out of Egypt. So do not be afraid.' [6] "For this is what the LORD of Heaven's Armies says: In just a little while I will again shake the heavens and the earth, the oceans and the dry land. [7] I will shake all the nations, and the treasures of all the nations will be brought to this Temple. I will fill this place with glory, says the LORD of Heaven's Armies. [8] The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, says the LORD of Heaven's Armies. [9] The future glory of this Temple will be greater than its past glory, says the LORD of Heaven's Armies. And in this place I will bring peace. I, the LORD of Heaven's Armies, have spoken!"

Vision

I was reading through my emails recently and found this by Charlene, from 'Grit and Virtue' who writes the encouraging email that I receive most weeks in my inbox from them. I don't always read to the end, but the other night I couldn't sleep so I took time to read through the email. It's about vision, sticking with it to see it through and making it a reality by positive action and growth.

I hope you enjoy reading the following as much as I did.

Jill

What’s your vision?
What stirs up in you when you read that question? Maybe you get excited because you know exactly what you want or what God is calling you to accomplish, or perhaps it makes you cringe because you have no idea. Whatever your relationship with the word vision is, I want to invite you to see it from a different perspective.

People that accomplish amazing things all point back to a vision they had and held onto until they reached it. Having a vision is important and how it manifests is different for each person. So, let’s dive in and make it more tangible.

We can have multi-layered visions, in life and work. In the context of work I like to refer to is as your vocational vision. You and I both know that following our dreams can be riddled with setbacks. The prerequisite of unleashing our inner grit is having a vision worth fighting for. It has to be worth it. It needs to be a vision that excites you and one that drives you. One that will propel you to keep showing up regardless of the challenges.

So, as someone who has pursued clarity in my vocational vision, and has helped many people unpack theirs, I understand the complexities in the process of discovering one’s vision.

However, here are 4 things to help guide you in discovering or bringing clarity to your vision:

Know Yourself
Introspection and self-awareness are the catalysts to living a life on purpose. Understanding what breaks your heart and what changes you want to see in the world are nudges leading to your desired vision.

Make it Tangible 
Begin articulating what you know to be your vision so far. It doesn’t have to be perfectly clear right now. Writing it down makes it tangible. Speaking it out loud gives it breath.

Evolve it Through Action 
You have permission to explore, experiment and evolve your vision over time. Take action, both big and small, toward it and see it unfold into something beautiful.

Continuously Bring it to God 
Lastly, our visions without His alignment means nothing. Above all things listen to His still small voice. It’s only then that we’ll get the peace, conviction, and confirmation to pursue our visions with reckless abandon.

You’ve got this,

Charlena

Faith that Overcomes

Faith that Overcomes

Developing Convictions that guide us

Faith - a conviction, a belief, 

Persistence and endurance Heb 11 Heb 12

Heb 11 - people of endurance and faith

Faith and Endurance

2 Dear brothers and sisters,[a] when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. 3 For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. 4 So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

Heb 12 - witnesses - run with endurance - 

Hebrews 12:1-2,7 NLT

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. [2] We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God's throne.

Dictionary Definition

Endurance - Patience

Original Word

ὑπομονή

Transliterated Word

hupomonē

Phonetic Spelling

hoop-om-on-ay'

Parts of Speech

Noun Feminine

Strong's Definition

From G5278; cheerful (or hopeful) endurance constancy: - enduring patience patient continuance (waiting).

Thayer's Definition

steadfastness, constancy, endurance

in the NT the characteristic of a man who is not swerved from his deliberate purpose and his loyalty to faith and piety by even the greatest trials and sufferings

patiently, and steadfastly

a patient, steadfast waiting for

a patient enduring, sustaining, perseverance

Cheerful hopeful endurance

Convictions that lead to hopeful endurance

These are my personal convictions that guide me and both require faith and build faith

God is good and loves us

God is at work and wants us to grow

God's plan is bigger than we can comprehend

When I look at the people of faith in the Bible, they are a mixed bunch.

Most of them found themselves in situations they did not plan and probably would not necessarily choose to be placed or to have wanted to find themselves

Esther - used to save the Jewish people

(Joseph - used by God to saved a family/clan,

Moses - used by God to free a people group

Esther - used by God to save a nation

Jesus - came to save the whole world - which is what the others looked forward to.)

Esther is a key player in the book named after her which is notable for its actual absence of the mention of God. However it forms part of the canon of Scripture, and we can learn much about faith. 

Not just Esther's faith, but also the faith and the wisdom of her uncle Mordecai

So to some background.

Esther 1:1-4  (NLT)

The King’s Banquet

1 These events happened in the days of King Xerxes,[a] who reigned over 127 provinces stretching from India to Ethiopia.[b] 2 At that time Xerxes ruled his empire from his royal throne at the fortress of Susa. 3 In the third year of his reign, he gave a banquet for all his nobles and officials. He invited all the military officers of Persia and Media as well as the princes and nobles of the provinces. 4 The celebration lasted 180 days—a tremendous display of the opulent wealth of his empire and the pomp and splendor of his majesty.

It goes on to tell us that they then feasted for another seven days. This is some party

Queen Vashti was called to come and show off her beauty before the nobles etc and she refused to do so. The king becomes angry, sends her away and then later gets lonely and decides on a beauty quest for a new queen. 

Clearly this is before the days of Women's Lib, Feminist movements and the #MeToo movement. 

Esther 2: 2-4

Esther Becomes Queen

2 But after Xerxes’ anger had subsided, he began thinking about Vashti and what she had done and the decree he had made. 2 So his personal attendants suggested, “Let us search the empire to find beautiful young virgins for the king. 3 Let the king appoint agents in each province to bring these beautiful young women into the royal harem at the fortress of Susa. Hegai, the king’s eunuch in charge of the harem, will see that they are all given beauty treatments. 4 After that, the young woman who most pleases the king will be made queen instead of Vashti.” This advice was very appealing to the king, so he put the plan into effect.

I bet it was appealing to the king. Not sure how appealing it was to the young women. They basically had to give up their freedom and become part of the harem. For a young Jewish girl with her whole life before her this can't have been a joyous prospect. 

In Esther we see a young Jewish girl placed in a difficult situation for someone from her upbringing. With only a few wise words from Mordecai, she leaves for the Harem.

But God had other ideas. Somehow, in the midst of this, Mordecai must have wondered what was happening. He stayed as close to Esther as he could, and remarkably Esther found favour with the King and is crowned queen. (after what is basically a beauty contest after months of treatment etc. 

I wonder what it was like with a whole bunch of women, vying for the kings attention, and carrying on like twerps - a bit like the bachelor show maybe!!

He's a man of loyalty to Esther - he continues o follow her progress, and he is loyal to the king. We tend with this story, to focus on Esther and her faith, and risk she took , to go in and see the king. But in actual fact, the story in many ways is about the faithfulness, wisdom, faith and loyalty of Mordecai in the face of opposition. 

Esther 2:21-23

Mordecai’s Loyalty to the King

21 One day as Mordecai was on duty at the king’s gate, two of the king’s eunuchs, Bigthana[g] and Teresh—who were guards at the door of the king’s private quarters—became angry at King Xerxes and plotted to assassinate him. 22 But Mordecai heard about the plot and gave the information to Queen Esther. She then told the king about it and gave Mordecai credit for the report. 23 When an investigation was made and Mordecai’s story was found to be true, the two men were impaled on a sharpened pole. This was all recorded in The Book of the History of King Xerxes’ Reign.

Faith is having the courage of our convictions 

The rest of the narrative is around Haman's hatred of Mordecai, his desire to remove Mordecai by removing the Jews (by genocide), and then of Mordecai's challenge to Esther. 

Mordecai was a man of his convictions. 

Haman’s Plot against the Jews

3 Some time later King Xerxes promoted Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite over all the other nobles, making him the most powerful official in the empire. 2 All the king’s officials would bow down before Haman to show him respect whenever he passed by, for so the king had commanded. But Mordecai refused to bow down or show him respect.

3 Then the palace officials at the king’s gate asked Mordecai, “Why are you disobeying the king’s command?” 4 They spoke to him day after day, but still he refused to comply with the order. So they spoke to Haman about this to see if he would tolerate Mordecai’s conduct, since Mordecai had told them he was a Jew.

5 When Haman saw that Mordecai would not bow down or show him respect, he was filled with rage. 6 He had learned of Mordecai’s nationality, so he decided it was not enough to lay hands on Mordecai alone. Instead, he looked for a way to destroy all the Jews throughout the entire empire of Xerxes.

Here, Mordecai is following through on his conviction of only bowing to honour God, not people. It takes courage to do so in the face of opposition. Haman decides that its not just enough to get rid of Mordecai, but all the Jews.

If it was just himself, I don't think Mordecai would have sought out Esther, but his loyalty to God and his people, his desire to save people, helped him to see, that Esther was placed in to this place of honour as queen for this time and this purpose. 

Esther 4:10-14

10 Then Esther told Hathach to go back and relay this message to Mordecai: 11 “All the king’s officials and even the people in the provinces know that anyone who appears before the king in his inner court without being invited is doomed to die unless the king holds out his gold scepter. And the king has not called for me to come to him for thirty days.” 12 So Hathach[a] gave Esther’s message to Mordecai.

13 Mordecai sent this reply to Esther: “Don’t think for a moment that because you’re in the palace you will escape when all other Jews are killed. 14 If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die. Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?”

His convictions in one way lead to the situation. His conviction in God's goodness, his conviction, that somehow, God was at work behind the scenes, enabled him to have a faith, accompanied by action that would see the Jews saved. 

James - Faith without action is dead. Faith with action is what transforms it to an overcoming faith. A reality of faith as opposed to a lip service of faith. 

Faith without Good Deeds Is Dead

14 What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone?15 Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing,16 and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?

17 So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.

18 Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.”

19 You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God.[f] Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. 20 How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless?

21 Don’t you remember that our ancestor Abraham was shown to be right with God by his actions when he offered his son Isaac on the altar?22 You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete. 23 And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.”[g] He was even called the friend of God.[h] 24 So you see, we are shown to be right with God by what we do, not by faith alone.

25 Rahab the prostitute is another example. She was shown to be right with God by her actions when she hid those messengers and sent them safely away by a different road. 26 Just as the body is dead without breath,[i] so also faith is dead without good works.

We see this when Peter was asked to drop his net on the other side of the boat, after fishing all night and not catching anything. We see it when Rahab hid the spies and hung the red cord from her window, and we see it when the widow collected jars and filled them with oil etc. 

Non of it really made sense. But it was faith with action and each person was able to overcome. God was at work, when they couldn't at first see it. 

God was at work, behind the scenes at all times. Mordecai in his wisdom seems to understand this.   

Faith that God will intervene (think about Daniel's friends in the fiery furnace)

What areas of your life can you look back on and see that God was at work behind the scenes? All of us can probably look back and say we couldn't see it at the time, we wondered what God was doing. 

But the sun is always shining above the clouds. We need to remember , when its tough, that a faith that overcomes, knows God is at work, that he has placed us where we are, even when we don't understand it at the time. 

When we begin to grasp this, we can begin to see that God is in control. 

He sees the bigger picture when we see only the circumstances. 

Faith trusts that God has a bigger picture in mind, a bigger purpose. Faith trusts in a certainty that is not always seen.

Mordecai began to grasp this, but Esther had not yet grasped it. 

This is where we see the phrase "for such a time". We like to think that this means our "such a time" is going to be marvellous, wonderful and straight forward. 

"It's our Year", "its our time" etc. 

However, Esther's life in the palace was not always easy and her placement "for this time" was fraught with danger and risk. 

God's bigger picture requires us to be prepared to take risks. As Esther grabs hold of her purpose, we see her willing to place her destiny in God's hands, and God's bigger plan and purpose. 

How does she handle this?

She garners the support of others.  

Esther 4:15-17

15 Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: 16 “Go and gather together all the Jews of Susa and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will do the same. And then, though it is against the law, I will go in to see the king. If I must die, I must die.”17 So Mordecai went away and did everything as Esther had ordered him.

Esther asks other to fast and she too says she will fast. Why fasting. In Jewish understanding, fasting is associated with prayer. Matt 6:5-17 Jesus connects fasting and prayer together. 

To have an overcoming faith, requires us to seek the face of God in prayer, to be prepared to go without sustenance, to develop spiritual strength.

But she also understood the power of two or three gathered together. There is power in people of the same purpose praying together. 

Matthew 18:19-20

19 “I also tell you this: If two of you agree here on earth concerning anything you ask, my Father in heaven will do it for you. 20 For where two or three gather together as my followers,[h] I am there among them.”

She and Mordecai did not isolate themselves.

They intentionally drew support from those around them for the common cause and for good. 

They began to put their faith into action, to seek God and to step out with courage. 

They saw that a greater purpose was being played out. 

God loves his people and is looking after them.

God is at work

God has the bigger picture

Oil, Fish and a Shepherds Staff

Our mandate as followers of Jesus is :

To help our friends discover the grace of God and live according to the commands of Jesus

We gather together for collective worship and also in smaller groups to nut out the nitty gritty of life and help each other to love each other and to build a strong sense of belonging and community.

As we  build community its also important to remember that we live within a large community of people who don’t really understand what the grace of God really is.

As I have been thinking about some of this I realise more and more that God doesn’t make this stuff hard – we do. 

And so to today's message. 

A staff, some fish and some oil

So

Moses – Briefly the story -  Exodus 3 and 4

Widow of Zarephath – Briefly the story – 1 Kings 17:8-16

Loaves and the fishes – Briefly the story – John 6:1-15

Using the ordinary

So often we see that God simply uses what we already have. It doesn’t have to be special

We think we need more training, more understanding etc and in the right time and place that is good, but actually, we all have things that might seem quite ordinary, and simple, but its amazing how God can use that.

A simple idea you have, a gift or talent, etc that we can use

For Moses, who had all the excuses in the world, it was his staff that he had.

4 But Moses protested again, “What if they won’t believe me or listen to me? What if they say, ‘The Lord never appeared to you’?”

2 Then the Lord asked him, “What is that in your hand?”

“A shepherd’s staff,” Moses replied.

3 “Throw it down on the ground,” the Lord told him. So Moses threw down the staff, and it turned into a snake! Moses jumped back.

4 Then the Lord told him, “Reach out and grab its tail.” So Moses reached out and grabbed it, and it turned back into a shepherd’s staff in his hand.

5 “Perform this sign,” the Lord told him. “Then they will believe that the Lord, the God of their ancestors—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—really has appeared to you.”

Staff and the rod were used by shepherd both to control the sheep and direct them in the right way and they were also used to fight off wild animals that would be prowling around to attack the sheep (picture of staff)

So the rod and the staff of Moses was something that as a shepherd he was familiar with, he carried it as part of his job in much the same way as a cricketer would have his bat with him, or a business woman would carry a bag.

The point is that God used what he had at hand.

God uses this approach so often

When Jesus was feeding the five thousand plus people – he used what was available – what was given to him by the boy

There was nothing miraculous about the fish and loaves. (probably sardines according to commentators) (picture of sardines)

But he offered up what he had and Jesus took what was very ordinary and created something extraordinary.

(Never underestimate what God can do through children – they offer what they have so much more easily than we do. I think that is why Jesus said we are to be like little children. )

Also the Widow of 1 Kings 17

She was looking at starvation, she had a small plan of action that seemed futile. There was nothing special about the flour and the oil. They were every day staple items.(Picture of flour and oil)

Yet When Elijah came, God used what she had to provide not only for her but for others as well

What is it that we have in our hands that seems small and insignificant?

Earlier in the year some of our Community initiatives team did some training and we did an exercise around what we have in our hands. (Picture of the word mountain)

It’s amazing what we all carried, all from different walks of life and all at different ages and yet there were experiences and learning that we already had available.

What is it that we have – sometimes we know – The little boy saw what he had. Sometimes we know what we have and don’t know how to use it – the widow, and sometimes we have to be told like Moses.

What is the same for each of these is that something ordinary was made extraordinary.

 

God created the opportunities

When we look at these stories we see that though God uses what we have and what we give to him, he is the one that creates the opportunities.

It was God who called Moses from the burning bush

Exodus 3

Moses and the Burning Bush

3 One day Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro,[a]the priest of Midian. He led the flock far into the wilderness and came to Sinai,[b] the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a blazing fire from the middle of a bush. Moses stared in amazement. Though the bush was engulfed in flames, it didn’t burn up.3 “This is amazing,” Moses said to himself. “Why isn’t that bush burning up? I must go see it.”

4 When the Lord saw Moses coming to take a closer look, God called to him from the middle of the bush, “Moses! Moses!”

“Here I am!” Moses replied.

5 “Do not come any closer,” the Lord warned. “Take off your sandals, for you are standing on holy ground. 6 I am the God of your father[c]—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” When Moses heard this, he covered his face because he was afraid to look at God.

7 Then the Lord told him, “I have certainly seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their cries of distress because of their harsh slave drivers. Yes, I am aware of their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the power of the Egyptians and lead them out of Egypt into their own fertile and spacious land. It is a land flowing with milk and honey—the land where the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites now live. 9 Look! The cry of the people of Israel has reached me, and I have seen how harshly the Egyptians abuse them. 10 Now go, for I am sending you to Pharaoh. You must lead my people Israel out of Egypt.”

It was God who sent Elijah to the widow

1Kings 17

The Widow at Zarephath

8 Then the Lord said to Elijah, 9 “Go and live in the village of Zarephath, near the city of Sidon. I have instructed a widow there to feed you.”

10 So he went to Zarephath. As he arrived at the gates of the village, he saw a widow gathering sticks, and he asked her, “Would you please bring me a little water in a cup?” 11 As she was going to get it, he called to her, “Bring me a bite of bread, too.”

12 But she said, “I swear by the Lord your God that I don’t have a single piece of bread in the house. And I have only a handful of flour left in the jar and a little cooking oil in the bottom of the jug. I was just gathering a few sticks to cook this last meal, and then my son and I will die.”

13 But Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid! Go ahead and do just what you’ve said, but make a little bread for me first. Then use what’s left to prepare a meal for yourself and your son. 14 For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: There will always be flour and olive oil left in your containers until the time when the Lord sends rain and the crops grow again!”

15 So she did as Elijah said, and she and Elijah and her family continued to eat for many days. 16 There was always enough flour and olive oil left in the containers, just as the Lord had promised through Elijah.

And it Jesus who said – you feed them.

John 6

6 After this, Jesus crossed over to the far side of the Sea of Galilee, also known as the Sea of Tiberias. 2 A huge crowd kept following him wherever he went, because they saw his miraculous signs as he healed the sick. 3 Then Jesus climbed a hill and sat down with his disciples around him. 4 (It was nearly time for the Jewish Passover celebration.)5 Jesus soon saw a huge crowd of people coming to look for him. Turning to Philip, he asked, “Where can we buy bread to feed all these people?”6 He was testing Philip, for he already knew what he was going to do.

“I’m nothing special – I’m just an ordinary person” – is what we often hear.

We see over and over again that God creates an opportunity with ordinary things and ordinary people.

But God takes the ordinary, creates the opportunity and asks us to step into it.

Paul encourages the Colossians to make the most of the opportunities. He prays that he too will be given opportunities by God to speak for him.

Colossians 4:2-6

An Encouragement for Prayer

2 Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart.3 Pray for us, too, that God will give us many opportunities to speak about his mysterious plan concerning Christ. That is why I am here in chains. 4 Pray that I will proclaim this message as clearly as I should.

5 Live wisely among those who are not believers, and make the most of every opportunity. 6 Let your conversation be gracious and attractive[a]so that you will have the right response for everyone.

 

As we pray, as we seek God, as we live wisely, God creates opportunities for us to step into. Gracious and attractive conversation is party of living wisely. 

Pray for opportunities, and look for the opportunities that God is creating for us to step into.

 

What is your “But I’m…”

As I’ve already said we often say things like:

“I’m nothing special – I’m just an ordinary person”.

But God takes the ordinary, creates the opportunity and asks us to step into it.

Feeding the 5000 plus

The little boy did not say – “how can we feed this many people with the small fish  and bread”.

He said – “this is what I have” and he was prepared to give it to God to use.

It was Andrew and Philip the other disciples who looked at it and said – “How can we feed all these people with this!?”

Perhaps we can be more like the small boy who instead of saying “this is not enough” offered what he had. John 6

The widow of Zarephath  - said “this is all I have – I’m going to use it and die” Elijah said – Make something for me and you will have enough.

The widow had to be prepared to give up what she was making for herself and her son – think about it – she knew she only had enough for two, but she was being asked to feed three so someone was going to miss out.

But she chose to give up what she had and God took it and multiplied it. Not just once but many times over each day, so that everyone had enough and they were able to survive a really difficult time.

Moses’ “But I’m’s…” were so plentiful

I’m not good with words,

I can’t speak

They won’t listen to me etc

Do these sound familiar.

We don’t always say them out loud, but I can just about guarantee we’ve all thought something and told ourselves something like this at some stage.

God got jack of it after a while. And he said – “What is in your hand..”

What is your own personal “BUT”.

(I’m tempted to say “just get over it” and give it to God to use).

We all have reasons why not.

I’m old, young, uneducated, tired, can’t write, don’t have enough…….

What’s your personal reason, your ‘”why not”

Le’ts look at it differently

Instead of looking at the “why nots” simply say, “Why not give it a go?” 

 

Obedience

Lastly

Jesus didn’t call us to be Good enough – he called us to a relationship of love and obedience

John 15:9-14

9 “I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love.10 When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. 11 I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow! 12 This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you. 13 There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 

The Miracle comes from obedience

Moses was obedient to God’s call – and many miracles happened.

The widow was obedient –

Vs 15 – She did as Elijah said.

The boy with the loaves gave up his lunch for others.

Jesus prayed and the disciples – in obedience - handed it out. The miracle happened, not when Jesus prayed but when the disciples were obedient.

Matthew 14:19-21

19 Then he told the people to sit down on the grass. Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, he gave the bread to the disciples, who distributed it to the people. 20 They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftovers. 21 About 5,000 men were fed that day, in addition to all the women and children!

For the widow and the boy with food, they used what they had available, were willing to give up what they had and God gave back in abundance.

God takes the ordinary and creates the extraordinary.

What ordinary thing do we have in our hands that God can make extraordinary?

Armour of God

Ephesians 6:13-17 NLT
Therefore, put on every piece of God's armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. [14] Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God's righteousness. [15] For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. [16] In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. [17] Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Belt - Truth - mentioned first - truth of who Jesus is, what he has done, who we are in him. This is first and foremost the greatest part of the armour because it reminds us of the truth of God and is the starting point.

Body Armour - representing the righteousness that comes from Christ and wraps us round protecting us and our heart. Covering our heart - relationship - Jesus' righteousness not our own.

Shoes - good news - ppreciated to take it into places that don't yet have the news of Jesus. When we have our shoes on we are ready to walk anywhere we need to go, prepared with the truth of the good news, protected by His righteousness.

Shield - faith - held up against enemy attack. Standing firm in faith - knowing we have our hearts protected, holding his righteousness around us and standing in truth.

Helmut - protection for our heads - right thinking - enables us to live transformed lives - thinking is protected - salvation - assurance - God's thoughts transforming our mind.

Sword - of the Spirit - word of God - sharpened and ready to use - a weapon of attack - God's Spirit brings the right words - God's word - at the right time to speak to the situation.

Truth
Righteousness
Good news
Faith
Salvation
The Word

Know the truth. Live in God's righteousness.  Share the good news. Live by faith.  Saved in right mind by grace. Know the Word of God.

We fight the enemy by understanding and applying these 6 things to our lives, not just occasionally but at all times.

In addition, pray in the spirit, stay alert - watchful - persistent in prayer for believers.

Devotional thought.

Ephesians 2:19-22 NLT
So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God's holy people. You are members of God's family. [20] Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. [21] We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord. [22] Through him you Gentiles are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit.

Citizens - from the same place, belonging to that same group of people (benefits and responsibilities of citizenship)

What are the benefits of our citizenship and what are our responsibilities?

E.g responsibilities to kingdom and it's King.

God's family - those gathered in Christ (belong to him) in the same family.

As a family there are benefits and responsibilities .

What are the benefits and responsibilities of families?

E.g Security, everyone works together - different roles and responsibilities, different gifts, given for the building up of others.

We have a strong foundation - secure.

Becoming a holy temple - carefully joined together for him (not for ourselves) - Fitted together perfectly

We are made citizens and built into a dwelling where God is honoured by us and found by others.

What are the implications of being built together?

Thoughts from Jonah

A couple of days ago I read through Jonah. Today I'm processing some thoughts around the last part of Jonah. We so often focus on the story of Jonah being swallowed by a big fish that we can miss the real point of Jonah.

Yes, we can learn about obedience and the consequences of lack of obedience through the first part of the story. Jonah's lack of obedience had a huge impact on him and our lack of obedience can too.

But let's think about what was happening in this situation. There is more going on than just lack of obedience. God needed to address the issues in Jonah's heart towards people.

God sent Jonah to preach to a city that was full of sin. God was planning on destroying the city because of the sin. When Jonah finally got there, and gave them God's word, the people received the message, believed it and repented. God, seeing the hearts of the people, with his love for them, showed them grace and spared them from destruction.

Surely this is a great outcome. But Jonah was not happy. He wanted God to destroy the people, to bring judgement on them the way he thought God should do it. How often do we want God to do things our way when God has something different in mind?

God's message to the people had brought repentance and salvation. Yet Jonah was not happy. God then provided a powerful lesson while Jonah was sulking, to help Jonah understand just how important people really are to him.

He allowed Jonah to find shade under a small plant, but Jonah was upset when it died and he was left to scorch in the sun. He complained to God. Notice how his focus was on him alone and not on others or even on God. Here is God's response. 

Jonah 4:10-11 NET
The LORD said, "You were upset about this little plant, something for which you have not worked nor did you do anything to make it grow. It grew up overnight and died the next day. [11] Should I not be even more concerned about Nineveh, this enormous city? There are more than one hundred twenty thousand people in it who do not know right from wrong, as well as many animals!"

God had to show Jonah, that people matter to him. In fact people matter immensely to God, more than we can really grasp or understand. Ninevah had many thousands of people. People who mattered to God and should have mattered to Jonah.

 People matter to God and should matter to us. Just as we are important to God, and loved by him, people who don't yet know his love and grace matter also and are loved by him. He wants them to know him, he does not want any person to perish.

1 Timothy 2:3-6 NLT
This is good and pleases God our Savior, [4] who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth. [5] For, There is one God and one Mediator who can reconcile God and humanity-the man Christ Jesus. [6] He gave his life to purchase freedom for everyone. This is the message God gave to the world at just the right time.

God is more interested in the lost* than we could ever be but he calls us to love them, to pray for them and to share life with them so that they also would know him.

This is the lesson Jonah had to learn. The people of Ninevah mattered to God. He cared about them and loved them. He forgave them when they turned to him. People still matter to God. He still loves them and sent Jesus into the world to make a way for them to come to him. We have been given a message of hope and grace for the world. A message of salvation.

Matt 28:18-20 NLT
Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth.  Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Like Jonah, we have a choice. We can run away from the call to speak God's message to people living far away from God, or we can embrace it, and be joyful when they discover God's saving grace. Then we have the opportunity to walk with them on the journey of discipleship towards maturity in the faith.

We can be so consumed by our own lives, so focused on our own comfort that we can think it's all about us. But God says to us, people still matter. There are thousands, many hundreds of thousands of people, in cities and countries in our own nation and all around the world that are yet to hear the message of God's love for them, who as yet have no way to discover the grace of God for themselves.

They are more important to God than our personal comfort. Are they more important to us than our personal comfort?

We have a message of hope, a message of grace that the world needs to hear, a message that God is asking us to take to others. Will we put aside our own comfort for the lives of other people?

(*Lost people are people who do not have a relationship with God that is based on who Jesus is, what he did for us through his death and resurrection and have then placed their hope for salvation in Jesus alone, thus beginning the journey of discipleship as a follower of Jesus)

Listening

James 1:19-20 NLT
Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. [20] Human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires.

How quick to listen are you? Listening is an art and a discipline. Its an art because when we listen well it produces something beautiful.

It is a discipline, because it takes practice ti do it well.

A Thought

"Then Joshua told the people, “Purify yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do great wonders among you.”"
Joshua 3:5 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/jos.3.5.NLT

We live in a different time and culture to Joshua and the Hebrew, the Israelites,  who after journeying in the wilderness, were now entering the promised land. Yet there is a principle here: purify yourselves. How do we do that?  How do we live righteously before God.

The Word of God gives us the answer. We come before God, confess our sins and let his righteous life cleanse us and make us whole. He promises to purify and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. The apostle John makes it clear in his first letter. Fellowship with God and each other is the result of faith in Jesus. It is faith in Jesus and his sacrifice for us which cleanses us from all sin.

 "But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin. If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness."
1 John 1:7‭-‬9 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/1jn.1.7-9.NLT

Once we understand this we can stop striving to try and please God by our own means and by striving to be good enough for God by our behaviour. Instead, by grace, God through his love, and the work of his Spirit, enables us to grow and to change by changing the way we think, (Rom 12:2) and thus our behaviour changes. We see life differently and live differently, by grace and not works.

Grace is not reliant on works and striving. We are saved by grace, we live by faith, and we are then able to live in obedience to God by the power of his spirit in us and do the works he prepared for us.

 "Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him."
Philippians 2:12‭-‬13 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/php.2.12-13.NLT

Paul is keen for followers of Jesus to understand the great power that is at work in us. It is the very power of God, his Spirit, at work enabling us to love him and live for him. Paul also encourages us in to live out of the new nature God has given us. We have become new creations (2 Cor 5:17) and are now made righteous by Christ.

 "Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy. So stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body. And “don’t sin by letting anger control you.” Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, for anger gives a foothold to the devil. If you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need. Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them."
Ephesians 4:21‭-‬29 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/eph.4.21-29.NLT

Paul tells us that we will be able to live differently because of what Jesus has already done, and therefore we can choose to live differently, no longer live like we did in the past. Sometimes old habits are hard to break. But Paul says to "put on your new nature". Let God show you where you need to change your behaviour. It is a daily choice to live in our new nature, not to gain salvation but because God in his grace and mercy had already given it to us.

A widow, an act of obedience and a miracle

2 Kings 4:1-7 NLT
One day the widow of a member of the group of prophets came to Elisha and cried out, "My husband who served you is dead, and you know how he feared the LORD. But now a creditor has come, threatening to take my two sons as slaves." [2] "What can I do to help you?" Elisha asked. "Tell me, what do you have in the house?" "Nothing at all, except a flask of olive oil," she replied. [3] And Elisha said, "Borrow as many empty jars as you can from your friends and neighbors. [4] Then go into your house with your sons and shut the door behind you. Pour olive oil from your flask into the jars, setting each one aside when it is filled." [5] So she did as she was told. Her sons kept bringing jars to her, and she filled one after another. [6] Soon every container was full to the brim! "Bring me another jar," she said to one of her sons. "There aren't any more!" he told her. And then the olive oil stopped flowing. [7] When she told the man of God what had happened, he said to her, "Now sell the olive oil and pay your debts, and you and your sons can live on what is left over."

In this account of the widow, the prophet asks her "what do you have?" All she had was a small amount of oil. The prophet instructs her to gather jars and pour her small amount of oil into them. Notice that God required a small act of obedience. She needed to get jars from her friends and pour oil into them.

"And she did as she was told". These words stood out to me today. I've read this story often, but today this small sentence was powerful. It seemed such a small thing. A small act of obedience but this small act changed her life in a powerful way. It gave her and her family a future.

It is this small act of obedience that brings the miracle.

As I read this I wonder:

Are we really prepared to do what God asks of us?

Sometimes we want God to perform a great miracle for us when what he is actually asking for is a small act of obedience. A small act that uses what we already have. That small act of obedience can create the change and the miracle that sets us on the right trajectory for the testy of our lives.

A couple of questions.

What is already in our hands that God can use?

What small act of obedience is God asking us to carry out?

My challenge is to look at what we already have. View it as God sees it, offer it to him,  and act in obedience.

A thought prompted by Ezekial

The Biblical book of Ezekial can be a difficult read. It is full of God's thoughts towards an unfaithful people, the people of Israel and Judah. And yet within its words and lengthy judgements on sin there is a lesson for us as well as many wonderful promises that relate to God's restoration for his people. We are told by Paul in his letters to Timothy that all scripture is useful.

2 Timothy 3:14-17 NLT
But you must remain faithful to the things you have been taught. You know they are true, for you know you can trust those who taught you. [15] You have been taught the holy Scriptures from childhood, and they have given you the wisdom to receive the salvation that comes by trusting in Christ Jesus. [16] All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. [17] God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.

If this is so; if Ezekial is written so that we can learn from it; if it is there for our correction, edification and equipping, then what do we learn from Ezekial?

Here's a couple of thoughts from my reading so far. God's main concern with his people is that they had turned away from him and were copying the customs of the people around them, customs that did not uphold justice or mercy or help people walk in a right relationship with him.

Ezekiel 11:12 NLT
and you will know that I am the LORD. For you have refused to obey my decrees and regulations; instead, you have copied the standards of the nations around you."

Does this sounds familiar to us? Paul's  words of encouragement to the people of Rome were very similar. He was exhorting them to live in a way that was different to the world and customs around them. He wanted them to know God's will for their lives and to allow God to do his transformative work in their hearts and in their minds and their thinking.

Romans 12:2 NLT
Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

So my first thought or question to us is this.

To what extent is my life conformed to the customs and patterns of behaviours in this world and is my life being transformed by God?

How am I allowing God to do his transformative work in me and am I letting him change me by addressing the way I think and the way I'm choosing to live in this world?

God calls his people to live in this world but to live differently in this world. Jesus prayed that we would know how to live in this world yet live for him.

John 17:15-18 NLT
I'm not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one. [16] They do not belong to this world any more than I do. [17] Make them holy by your truth; teach them your word, which is truth. [18] Just as you sent me into the world, I am sending them into the world.

We are to live in this world, yet differently to the world. In fact Jesus clearly states that we are sent into the world. We are not to escape this world but to live in a way that honours and glorifies God in this world.

God's promise to the people of Israel was that he would place a new spirit within them. When they returned to follow him, and do away with the evil practices and customs of the world, he would change them from people with hard, stony hearts and transform them into people with a tender and responsive heart.

Ezekiel 11:19-20 NLT
[19] And I will give them singleness of heart and put a new spirit within them. I will take away their stony, stubborn heart and give them a tender, responsive heart, [20] so they will obey my decrees and regulations. Then they will truly be my people, and I will be their God.

This is also God's promise to us. It is a rebirth, just as Jesus told Nicodemus he must be born again (John 3). God wants us all to know this rebirth, to be born of the Spirit. He wants us all to be transformed. When we choose to become followers of Jesus, God gives us a new spirit within. We are a new creation.

My second set of thoughts then is around the nature of our hearts. Have we made the decision to be a follower of Jesus, handing our life over to him? (Or are we still holding onto bits of the old self wanting to rule our own lives?)

And if so, where are we holding onto old ways of stubbornness and hardness of heart when God wants to give us a tender heart that is responsive to him? Responsive to his transforming power in our lives and responsive to his heart for a hurting world.

It is only by allowing God's ongoing transformation (for it is an ongoing work) in our lives that we can become the people God has planned for us to be and to change the world in which we live by being examples of his love and grace in the world. It is both a work of grace which is a gift from God (Eph 2:8-10) and an application of that work in our lives (Phil 2:12,13).

Father I pray that we will live differently in the world around us and have a tender and responsive heart to you and to the people you love.

Thoughts from the writing of Peter.

A couple of quick thoughts from this morning's time with God.

1 Peter 3:15-16 NET
But set Christ apart as Lord in your hearts and always be ready to give an answer to anyone who asks about the hope you possess. [16] Yet do it with courtesy and respect, keeping a good conscience, so that those who slander your good conduct in Christ may be put to shame when they accuse you.

Set Christ apart as Lord

What does it mean to 'set Christ apart as Lord'? What does that look like in my life and in yours. I can only answer for me but as I read these verses it's important to look at what comes before because that is what gives context to this. The verses before are all about honouring other people, in the way we live, how we speak and in our actions.

So setting Christ apart is all about honouring him first and foremost. Giving Jesus first place means letting him have the way in our thoughts, attitudes and behaviour so our lives reflect his nature and not our own. Then when we are asked, we can give a reason for the hope we have in him. When Jesus has first place in our hearts, God's Spirit can produce in us the right fruit, the right speech, the right behaviour.

And then further on we read:

1 Peter 4:17 NET
For it is time for judgment to begin, starting with the house of God. And if it starts with us, what will be the fate of those who are disobedient to the gospel of God?

I always find this verse interesting. Jesus clearly calls us not to judge one another in Matt 7:1-3. So what could Peter mean here?

Remember the context is all about our attitudes. I believe God is asking us to take a look deeply into our own attitudes, motives and behaviours. We can judge our actions and behaviours in the light of the grace given to us through Christ.

I think we can sometimes find these verses to be not very palatable because we want to solely focus on God's grace. However God is going to make a judgement on how we live and how we have allowed his grace and love to transform us.

We are saved by faith. It is the only thing that saves. This is God's grace and nothing else as we see in Eph 2:8. But because of grace, our actions become part of the saving process of working out our salvation. Paul, after encouraging us to have the attitude of Jesus says to work hard to show the results of your salvation and to do so with awe and reverence, Phil 2:12,13 (NET)

So what does this mean for me and for you? How do we apply this to our lives?

Here is my take on this.

Am I living my faith by concentrating on and focusing on my journey and what I need to work on and deal with rather than judging others?

In other words - judge my own actions according to God's word and let God make a judgement on other people.

What about you?

Today if you hear his voice...

Today my thoughts turn to living in obedience. As a follower of Jesus true discipleship requires obedience to his Word, the teaching we find in the Bible about how we are to live.

Obedience, true obedience starts with a heart of worship and celebration.  It continues in knowing that we belong to him and are cared for by him. This requires us to trust him. Notice that the call to obedience begins with the conviction of God's care for us.

Psalm 95:6-9 CSB
Come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the LORD our Maker.
[7] For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, the sheep under his care. Today, if you hear his voice:
[8] Do not harden your hearts as at Meribah, as on that day at Massah in the wilderness
[9] where your fathers tested me; they tried me, though they had seen what I did.

The word 'hear' as in the phrase 'Today if you hear his voice' is to hear with intention. To hear with an expectation that you will act in obedience to what you hear. The Israelites heard, but hardened their hearts, the psalmist asks us to choose a different path and to hear God with intention and with obedience.

James also picks up on this in his writing on hearing and doing.

James 1:22-25 CSB
But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. [23] Because if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like someone looking at his own face in a mirror. [24] For he looks at himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of person he was. [25] But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom and perseveres in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer who works-this person will be blessed in what he does.

It is the same understanding that we will hear and we will act intentionally on what we hear. We are not to be stubborn like the Israelites, but instead, choose to walk in obedience. Freedom and blessing is ours and comes through trust in the God who saves us and in obedience to his  guidance and direction for our lives.

Creating space for creativity

How creative are you and your team?

Allowing space for innovation and creativity are important to allow teams to grow and flourish. But how do we create space for innovation?

We've been taught to think that raising ideas in a group setting, brainstorming or pooling our thoughts, leads to more creative and innovative ideas. But does it?

Here's a great article debunking the myth that brainstorming builds greater innovation and creativity.

Why Brainstorming Groups Kill Breakthrough Ideas (and What To Do Instead) http://flip.it/dGjCHU

Thought of the day

Isaiah 30:20-22
God speaks - let us listen. God wants to teach us, guide us, direct us, and bless us. Listen for his voice - he will show you the way.

A thought about idols. What are the idols in our lives

Materialism - the stuff of this world

Comparrison - how do I measure up to others

Fitting in - to be accepted

Here's the thing: I think we spend so much time and focus on "fitting in" and "being accepted" that they have become the idols of our world.

Therefore - we worship at the "temple" of the materialist god - the shopping centre - and spend our lives on what does not nourish the soul.

We chase after relationships with people that will never fulfil our desire for acceptance because God is where we find acceptance.

Pay Attention

To all the amazing women I do life with, I'd like to share some thoughts. 

I read the following verse in my quiet time today and saw it in a slightly different light to how i I'd previously reflected on it. 

Galatians 6:4 NLT

Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won't need to compare yourself to anyone else.

We often focus on the "you won't need to compare yourself" part and this is valid. Comparison is negative and destructive and we do need to focus on what God has called us to do and not compare ourselves to others. 

But today when I read this I thought about "pay careful attention to your own work". As leaders we can fall into the trap of picking up the pieces for what others are meant to do. I'm sure we've  all done it. I know I have. 

The trouble is, when we pick up the pieces for others and take responsibility for what they are supposed to do we don't have satisfaction in our own work. Instead we become tired and frustrated because our time gets pressured by trying to do all the extra stuff. And this impacts everything we do and we miss focusing on and paying careful attention to what we are called to do. 

Sometimes we are tempted to pick up the pieces  because we want to save face or protect our people or organisation from criticism. We want to see things happen and get things done and we don't want to let people down. 

But in doing so we don't do anyone any favours. We end up losing out and so do our team because they don't learn to take responsibility for their own work, and ultimately they also lose the satisfaction of a job well done. Sometimes this means some things will not happen and that is disappointing, but people learn and grow from failure if we allow them to. 

Let's build a culture in our own lives that  builds relationships and loves and cares for people but that also focuses on doing what we're called to do. Let's model what it means to pay careful attention to our work and find satisfaction in that. And let's bring other's with us on the journey.

Reflection

What has God called me to do and how am I paying careful attention to it? 

Where might I be picking up the pieces for others?

What would happen if I stopped picking up the pieces?

What conversations might I need to have?

Jill