Saturday, December 31, 2011

The Good Shepherd - KJV

John 10:9-11
9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.

2 Corinthians 5:17
17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

Ezekiel 36:26-27
26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.
27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

Psalm 112:1
1 Praise ye the LORD. Blessed is the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in his commandments.

Jeremiah 17:7
7 Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.

Psalm 37:25
25 I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.

1 Chronicles 16:34
34 O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever.

Friday, December 31, 2010

In the Light of Newness

The year 2010 must set so a new year can dawn. This is the time to reflect and give thanks for God has brought us through. We may have fallen short in certain aspects of our lives but there is still time while we are alive, to make a change, to be the best and do the best we can.

Never forget that there are angels amongst us, some in spirit and some in the flesh. We may or may not know them personally, but they watch over us as directed by God. They can protect, bring a ray of sunshine, make us smile or simply do an act of kindness. Each of which will impact upon our lives for years to come.

The blessings we receive from above, sometimes go unseen but they fall upon us in many ways, and at no point in time should we be ungrateful. They may not always be what we expect but they are exactly what we need in that moment.

2011 is the year not just for possibilities, but conquering what we may think is the impossible. Always keep these true words of faith in mind, “with God all things are possible,” Mark 10:27.

I wrote this post while at work today and even though I was recently shown a truth, I decided not to change the original content. Everyday that we walk this earth, we learn something new. Courage is not built upon happiness it is built from struggle, and where others may take from your life, God has a way of rejuvenating 200% of what was taken away. My resolution for 2011 is to always be proud of who I am because I am a unique and wonderful creation, Psalm 139:14, and no one but God, can take that away from me.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

The Wanderer

In many of his teachings, Jesus focused on God’s love for the sinner and the happiness felt by all of heaven, when one individual decides to change and give his or her heart to him. The story of the prodigal son in Luke 15:11-32 reiterates that point.

A man had two sons, and one day the younger approached his father requesting his portion of the family’s wealth. The father not wanting to deny his child gave to him what he desired, and soon after the younger son left home with his belongings for an adventure into the world. He travelled to a distant country and being naïve, spent all his riches on revelry, sex and wastefulness.

After squandering all he had, a great famine came upon that land and he became a vagabond. With no family or friends to help him, he had to labour for someone tending swine and ate the husks fed to those animals. He was an outcast, but sometime later he came to his senses, realizing that even his father’s servants lived and ate better than he did. With that in mind he decided to journey home to grovel at his father’s feet, and no longer being worthy of the title ‘son’ he would work for him as a servant.

So he left for home, but while he was a great distance away his father saw him and ran to greet him, and despite his smelly and filthy state, the father embraced him tightly and kissed him. The son’s request to serve was ignored and even before he was able to complete his statement, his father called for the best robe, a ring and shoes to clothe him. A large feast was then prepared by the servants to celebrate the return of this long lost son. However, not everyone was pleased by this turn of events. After a hard days work, the elder son came home to discover merriment and dancing for the return of someone that disgraced the family’s name.

Refusing to enter the house, the father came out and pleaded with him but in anger the elder son said, “All these years I remained loyal, I was not once disrespectful or ungrateful to you, yet I was never given a small banquet to be festive with my friends, but as soon as this pathetic son of yours had arrived who spent your hard earned income on prostitutes, a big celebration was thrown in his honour.” With love his father replied, “My son as you are always with me, everything I own is yours, but it is right for us to be happy and celebrate the return of your brother who was dead, but is alive once again, lost but is now found.”

Here we are told the true meaning of unconditional love which is the love that God has for our fallen race. When we decide to turn to him, he meets us halfway to embrace us, accepting us regardless of our present condition; regardless of the wrong we have committed, and even if others disapprove of our willing to turn our life around or do not accept our sincerity, God sees the heart, he understands and he will cleanse us.

Sunday, October 10, 2010

A Deep Connection

In the circle of life you are the core.
You know all that exist upon the earth.
Even in solitude we cannot hide our most intimate thoughts from you.
You understand our frustrations and doubts, and reveal to us the path that must be taken to move past them.
When surrounded by chaos there is peace, because you are our shelter.
In our tiredness and inability to make that extra step, you lift us up and carry us onwards.
It is therefore undeniable, that your luminescence brightens the dark trail which leads to the ongoing stream of our existing lives.
From this we know that with our every breath, your love flows inside us.
You are the beauty in every flower, the serenade of tweeting birds and the cool feel of raindrops on our skin.
You are our redeeming grace.