Musings

Blessed   is   the man who trusts in the   Lord , And whose hope is the   Lord . For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, Which spreads out its roots by the river, And will not fear   when heat comes; But its leaf will be green, And will not be anxious in the year of drought, Nor will cease from yielding fruit. Jeremiah 17:7-8 Many of us often wonder how we can be blessed and lead successful lives on this earth. Yesterday, I came across the above verses in my daily reading and the imagery stayed in my mind. We often read that those who trust and hope IN the LORD are blessed, but as I reread verse 7, I realized it says ‘blessed is the man… whose hope IS the LORD.’ How wonderful! The hope of the believer IS the LORD who upholds all things and is eternal. The beautiful picture of a green, lush tree by waters portrays the believer who is firmly rooted in the Source of his faith. The depth of the roots of a tree depends on the quality...

Peeps, hopefully all your Christmas shopping is done! As we brace ourselves for Storm Barbara in the UK, it is lovely to be indoors with an abundance of Christmas cheer (anyone who’s grumpy, please leave!). Now to wrap a mound of presents and turn up the Christmas music! Will everyone like their gifts? ‘Well, it’s the thought that counts,’ we say to ourselves….. The year is sometime between 4 and 2 B.C. (thanks to the miscalculations of Dionysius Exiguus) and the Magi are arranging a trip from the East to Bethlehem to see the Promised Messiah, who has been born to Mary and Joseph. They are coming to worship the One revealed to them as the ‘King of the Jews’ and it follows they should bring gifts fit for a King.   In the ancient world, gold, frankincense and myrrh were often given as gifts to honour a deity. The Magi had not only understood that the Christ-Child was ‘King of the Jews’, but that He was to be worshipped as God ! How appropriate were the first Christmas gifts...

Freddie Mercury, who tragically died 25 years ago today from AIDS, recorded "The Show Must Go On" 6 weeks prior to his death. How sad and hopeless are the sentiments of the song: ...what are we living for? ...does anybody know what we are looking for? ...does anybody want to take it anymore? ...inside my heart is breaking ...I'll leave it all to chance Maybe some of you are asking the same questions. Is your existence hopeless? Do you know why you are here? The moment you understand the purpose of your life, you'll never be the same again. Your Creator made you for a purpose. He made you in His image to have fellowship with Him and live for eternal values, but sin has separated you from Him and that victorious life. He will never override your free will, but as you ignore Him and live in 'empty spaces', His heart is breaking! Come to Him for real life! Receive His Spirit and taste ETERNAL life on this earth and in the life to come. Read God's vers...

Recently, I stood at the open grave of a much beloved relative who had told the preacher not to pay tribute to her in his eulogy, but rather to speak much of her wonderful Saviour before his audience. How beautiful! A person who lives with the goal of glorifying Christ is indeed a precious soul on earth and is well known in the courts of Heaven. People who worship God not only in song but with their whole manner of living are people who carry His presence with them. A worshipping heart is a humble, thankful heart inspired by God’s love to put Him first in their lives and to reach out to a hurting world. A worshipping heart neither complains nor grumbles about circumstances, but brings a spirit of peace into the midst. This was evident in my relative’s life. What a great example to follow! When we are tempted to feel dismayed or overwhelmed by events, sometimes it is necessary to listen to a song and worship! When we get our eyes off the problems and focus on the a...

I faced a mountain, That I never faced before That's why I'm calling on the Lord I know it's been awhile, But Lord please hear my prayer I need you like I never have before. Chorus: Sometimes it takes a mountain Sometimes a troubled sea Sometimes it takes a desert To get a hold of me Your Love is so much stronger Than whatever troubles me Sometimes it takes a mountain To trust you and believe Forgive me, Jesus I thought I could control Whatever life would throw my way But this I will admit Has brought me to my knees I need you Lord and I'm not ashamed to say... Who ever said life would be easy? The Lord did not promise us a bed of roses, but despite the intensity of the difficulty or burden, Christ's love is stronger. The Christian has a power which can overcome any problem we have to face and leads ultimately to a life of victory. The power which raised Christ from the dead is in us! This is affirmed at least twice in the New Testament by the apost...

Many languages in the world refer to the Easter period with the proper word e.g French - Pâques, Greek - Πάσχα (Pascha), Russian - Пасха (Paska), even Esperanto - Paska! These words are derived from Aramaic פסחא , cognate to Hebrew פֶּסַח (Pesach), i.e Passover, the time when Jesus was crucified, according to the Gospel records. Our word 'Easter', German 'Ostern', is derived from Ēastre, the name of a pagan goddess associated with spring. No matter when we celebrate (according to the Gregorian or the Julian calendar or at Passover) the fact remains - the MOST IMPORTANT EVENT in history took place at the appointed time! Many of us contemplate it very often, perhaps even every day! An accurate description of what would happen at the cross is found in the Old Testament. Isaiah 53 was written over 700 years before the birth of the Lord and was fulfilled when He was crucified. Let the words speak for themselves: 1 Who hath believed our report? and to whom ...

I must admit, I love the morning. The peace, the silence, the coffee... And most importantly, the presence of God! The Psalmist loved the morning. We can catch his sense of joy as he lifted up his heart to praise Yahweh, the Keeper of his soul. It is good to give thanks to the LORD, And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High; To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning, And Your faithfulness every night, On an instrument of ten strings, On the lute, And on the harp, With harmonious sound. For You, LORD, have made me glad through Your work; I will triumph in the works of Your hands. Psalm 92:1-4 Even though I grew up in a Christian family, I did not realize the importance of having a ‘quiet time’ with God each morning until I was 18. This materialized through a challenging teaching on the subject one Saturday evening. Then began an incredible journey of discovering truth for myself. The Bible is the LIVING WORD OF GOD! How exciting to hold it in our hands and learn throu...