Three Widows

We read in the book of Ruth about Naomi who lost her husband Elimelech and then her two sons Mahlion and Chilion in the space of about ten years. She was left destitute in a foreign country and as this was a patriarchal society. With no means of support life for Naomi was at rock-bottom. Each death was a further blow to her equilibrium; how could she carry on?

But we only need to read through the book to know that with God’s guidance she did come out the other side of the tragedies and lived long enough to become a grandmother and then an honoured member of the community with a link through King David to the Messiah.

I am thinking of a couple in my church who have had blow upon blow to their lives. Each Sunday we gasp as yet another misfortune is revealed. What is God doing? Again there are hardly any words to say, just constant prayer for them. They will come through, they will again know God’s bounty in their lives. As the old hymn says, ‘God is working His purpose out as year succeeds to year.’

Give Up What!

In the season of Lent, I’m often asked, mainly by non-Christian friends, ‘What have you given up for Lent?’ I reply as graciously as possible, ‘I’m not giving up anything, I’m putting on.’ I commend people who during this period give up something which they feel they should not be doing. It is good to give up a habit which is becoming too important in our lives but surely the period of Lent gives us something more important.

My mind goes to the story of Jesus, as it should, being tempted by the devil in the wilderness for forty days. When the devil asks Jesus to turn the stones into bread, Jesus replies, quoting from the Bible, ‘man shall not live by bread alone, but on every word that comes out of the mouth of God.’ When we refer to the Bible we will find help and guidance. Surely the period of Lent is a time we can spend more time reading the word of God.

Then Jesus was devil-tempted to throw Himself down from the top of the temple. As Jesus replied, we should not put God to the test. We need to trust our own lives to Jesus, leaning on His help and guidance. And finally the devil tempted Jesus to worship him. We too are tempted to follow other gods – money, power, acclamation and many more things. There is only the one God who we can serve with all our heart, mind and spirit.

A Bruised Reed

‘Oh, that my ways were steadfast in obeying Your decrees. Then I would not be put to shame when I consider all Your commands.’ Psalm 119: 5 & 6

.As I read these words my heart cried out in understanding. I sometimes feel like the bruised reed that Isaiah wrote about, bruised and shaken by the winds of life… There are my good days when I am able to speak to a non-believer about Your love, am able to help a neighbour and feel really close to God. Those days are interspersed with my failure days. Speaking to a non-believer about You ending up in a disagreement; I am not able to help anyone and I feel thoroughly disillusioned and far from God.

As I think about the bruised reed I realise what keeps it in place. Deep down in the soil are the roots. The drought will come followed by floods, the searing wind will blow, but it will not be uprooted. Jesus understood when He talked about the house built on a rock. It would not be moved because it’s foundations were secure.

This is my life. At times I am battered, bruised and beaten down but my life is rooted in Christ, I am secure .

Not Seeing Jesus

Grief can blind our eyes, we can’t see what is right in front of us. Two of the disciples of Jesus were walking on the way to Emmaus. Their sight was physically obscured with tears while their hearts were blinded with sorrow. To have a stranger join them on the journey was not unusual, it was safer to travel in a group. Bandits and thieves were often lurking on the way.

The two disciples dominated the conversation at first pouring out their grief and despair at the death of Jesus. They gained no comfort from the fact that some of the woman had actually seen the empty tomb and angels who said, ‘He is alive.’ It was such an improbable idea that their minds were closed!

Then Jesus had a chance to speak, expounding the Scriptures to them but it was not until He broke the bread at their meal that they recognised Him. Their eyes were opened. and immediately He disappeared from their sight. What a missed opportunity! Instead of spending hours in the presence of their Saviour, they only recognised Him for minutes, maybe only seconds.

Do we see Jesus when He is right in front of us, maybe in the kindness of a stranger, a baby’s first smile or a saint leaving this world and approaching the next. ‘Lord, may we see You where You are, right beside us to comfort and guide. Amen’

In the Way

I read once again the story in Mark of the paralysed man who was let down through the roof by his friends. We can imagine the scene in our mind’s eye. As we read the story we often concentrate on the four friends who loved their friend so much that they used their imagination so nothing would stop them getting their friend to Jesus. At other times we concentrate on the paralyzed man himself who could do nothing to help himself, but relied on the care of others and the miraculous love of Jesus.

At the moment I am considering the crowd who in their eagerness to get to Jesus were in the way, They were a stumbling block to this man’s healing. Crowds always seem to have a mind of their own, kindness and consideration goes out of the window. As the man was suspended over their heads, the crowd had no choice but to move.

It’s a terrible thought, but do I stand in the way of someone getting to Jesus? By my bumbling witness and eagerness to tell a friend the life-saving news, am I a hindrance and not a help. I need sometimes to get out of the way and stand on the sidelines and pray, leaving to others the task of evangelising. I can only pray that God will give me the wisdom to know when and which is my role.

Modern-Day Giants

When the Israelites went into the Promised Land they saw the abundance of the produce, milk and honey, pomegranites, figs and grapes so large that it took two men to carry the branch. They also encountered the giants who populated the land, fortified cities and six residents nations who would be sure to oppose them. Ten of the men concentrated on the appearance of the giants and forgot the abundance of the fruit and God’s promise.

Today our giants are of a different type. Our giants are misinformation, the over-spill of the results of war with the resultant refugees, dictators gaining influence and a lack of acknowledging God . The list is endless.

But we are in the same position as the Israelites, we still have the promises of God. He has promised that the wicked will eventually be judged, His justice will reign. A time is coming when sin and disease will be no more, even death will be conquered. While we wait for heaven, God has sent us blessings and joy for the here and now. We have the longer days and evidence of spring approaching. We have the love and support of friends and family. The church, the Bible and Christian fellowship are God’s blessings for us while we wait.

The First Port of Call

‘These are the words of Him who is holy and true, who opens the key of David. What He opens no-one can shut and what He shuts no-one can open.’ Romans 3:7.

‘The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.’ Psalm 23:1

Since I’ve moved house I’ve had problem upon problem. In the first few days I had a broken boiler and a broken toilet. These days both of these are essential. I also suffered a burglary and a gas leak. Now I’ve just discovered I have a leak in the roof because of recent bad workmanship. I would love to tell you that on discovering the problems I immediately turned to prayer. Alas, I am a flawed human being. You would think that after decades of being a Christian, I would have learned. With a God who knows the end from the beginning, of course, He knows the answers to the problems. He knows where my keys and glasses are when I can’t find them.

But, God is not like a great Father Christmas. We can’t just tap into anything we want from Him. He is the amazing, awesome, finite God. There is a price to pay, a very large one. The price in my complete dedication and obedience for the rest of my life.

My Struggles

A while back I had become disillusioned and struggling with my faith. Although I prayed a good deal, I didn’t seem to find contentment. Then after reading through a number of meditations and Christian books, I realised I had too much ‘I’ in my life. ‘I’ was trying to be more holy, ‘I’ was trying to make my own decisions, ‘I’ was trying to witness to others; I knew I had to turn my life round completely. It was not my trying that mattered, everything needed to be turned over to God. It wasn’t my struggling that mattered, it was allowing God to have His own way in my life. He would allow things to happen according to His will and not to mine. Holiness would come from Him and not from me. Witness to others about God’s love would be of no use on my own. God knows how and when each person will come to Him. He alone would know if He would graciously use me. How arrogant I had been to think I was the centre of the universe. My every thought and action needed to be given over to Him.

‘I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.’ 1 Corinthians 10:33

A Built-in Best Friend

Two of our teenagers were being baptised; the church was full to overflowing (at least three extra rows of chairs were added.) Relatives of the two girls came from as far away as Bristol and America. It was a lovely service with the two youngsters giving a good report of their faith, before the actual ceremony of baptising them. There was plenty of clapping and cheering. A visitor to the church would have known we were very happy about it, as these girls had been nurtured by their families and various sections of the youth work for a number of years. We all felt we had a small part in them being where they were on that Sunday.

What stood out for me was the remark of by one of the girls. As adults we use many words and descriptions to explain the closeness of God. ‘only a breath away’, ‘a constant being with us.’ ‘closer than a brother.’ But one young lady put it so succinctly ‘God is like having a built-in best friend.’ We couldn’t have put it better!

Hebrews 12:1

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.’ Hebrews 12:1

We don’t have to run this Christian race on our own. For the last two thousand of years there have been many, many Christians and martyrs who have set us an example. Reading about past missionaries is not as popular as it once was, but still their lives are remarkable. They went through many troubles and difficulties, often remaining on the mission field until the end of their days.

It isn’t only to the past that we have to turn. Many Christians in many lands are an example to us today. There are still nations which have not been reached, others have heard the gospel but the persecution is very high. Some countries are trying to eradicate Christianity from their country all together. If they knew how strong our God is, they would realise He is unbeatable.

So we must stop making excuses and tell all we can about the love and salvation of our God. Sin can entangle us, we can run out of enthusiasm. The need to evangelise is as great as it has ever been.