Monday 21 November 2016

My God is MIGHTY

What does it mean when people go on about How MIGHTY God is? I know what mighty means but really what does it mean to say My GOD is MIGHTY?

When we just stop for a moment and try to grasp the sheer enormity of just how MIGHTY God is, we can't help but be thunderstruck by the fact that He is indeed an AWESOME God - and I mean AWESOME in the real sense of the word.


God is so mighty that sometimes His very presence can be terrifying indeed. We stand in awe and wonder as to just how mighty and majestic He is!

The very mighty power that raised Jesus from the dead and conquered the very forces of evil and vanquished satan to wallow here on earth trying desperately to convince man just how sinful and dreadful are his sins, is the very mighty power that saved you  - that changed you!

When we grow in Christ the changes in our lives become more and more evident - where once we condoned even loved to sin now we are intolerant even hating sinning, cheating and whatever else comes between our saviour God and us.

All this is through the mighty saving power of Jesus - the very one who plucked us out of the filthy pit we dug ourselves and enjoyed being in. There is no such power greater and more consistent and faithful than the power of God.

God's very majesty and power are so evident - you just have to step outside in the middle of a storm and feel the rain against your face or watch the thunderclouds gather and see the lightening. He is MIGHTY indeed! When you think as you stand there in wonder that there is nothing really between God and you - you can almost just get a glimpse of His might, His power and even His face - He is that close.

God controls everything in this world and these natural marvels are a vivid reminder of God's awesome majesty, might and power. When I take the time to watch an incredible sunset - or see HUGE waves crash onto the shore - I am overwhelmed by the sheer force of His might. That couldn't possibly have just happened or evolved! God's creative power at work!

God could have made this world a purely functional place but instead He filled it with marvellous beauty which in turn mirrors His majesty and MIGHT!

His might brought the world into existence - His love and might saved our souls through His grace. The fact that God loves us anyway, even though we have nothing really we can offer back to Him is amazing and worthy of praise.

Another thought while we are thinking of His mightiness is that He is so mighty and awesome that he is worshipped by the multitudes in heaven itself! The heavenly hosts praise Him - giving Him honour and glory for all that He has created - If the very beings in heaven fall before His throne in awe and wonder then how much more should we also fall before Him in worship?

Just think back over your life for a few minutes. Reflect on the ways that God has cared for you, protected you and blessed you. He showed mercy when we rebelled - He forgave us when we often couldn't forgive ourselves!

He has genuinely given us unconditional love and blessings!

Our God is a MIGHTY God: Our God is a glorious God - Turn to Him now - accept Him into your life - give Him one hundred percent: Give Him the praise and worship that he deserves.






Monday 7 November 2016

abandonment

Did you ever experience being lost as a child or left at a pre-school or kindergarten without your Mum - horrible feeling isn't it. Separation anxiety is a real problem - a feeling of abandonment or rejection. Do you remember that feeling of absolute aloneness?

Can you recall the horror of being totally abandoned and out of control with these overwhelming feeling of utter hopelessness. - David wrote Psalm 27 when he was suffering the same fate.

He explains that his enemies wanted to kill him but even so he was convinced that he would be physically safe in battle. He had a strong sense of God's plans for his life - after all hadn't he been kept safe with the  Goliath incident and look at how God kept him safe throughout the years that Saul had been out to get him?

Rather than panicking over being abandoned by his friends and loved ones, David turned to the only true constant he knew - his Creator and Lord, the one who would never abandon him.

David found comfort and security that he needed - an incredibly beautiful thing to remember next time you are alone. God is your light and salvation. You're never lost with Him.

There are so many of us today facing abandonment and rejection - my mind travels to the many many orphans and single mums devastated through war and loss of homes and loved ones - it must be absolute horror to go through this. Many others have faced rejection and abuse throughout their own childhood and have grown  up carrying unresolved wounds.

These unresolved wounds caused through abandoned and rejection cause a multitude of emotional problems. Abandonment and rejection ranks among the most distressing of events that we as humans can experience. We are all created to co-exist with our fellow beings - to love and share - to give and take freely and lovingly.

Rejection/abandonment by anyone, but especially a loved one or a close family member, can have devastating effects. A romantic relationship, bullying stigmatisation, family breakdown even job redundancy can compromise our situation to the extent that we can't seem to operate throughout the day - Abandonment or rejection can cause insomnia and sudden drops in any positive emotions.

This act of abandonment or rejection by others can cause depression, anxiety and phobias.

So what do we do when we have no-one to turn to -  no-one to cling to? We do what David did in Psalm 27 - we turn to our ROCK, our Saviour, our own Jesus. Only he is our constant when things go wrong - when others abandon us - when we are bullied and alone - when we are separated from our peers and loved ones and no-one understands.

God is our ROCK. By describing God as our ROCK, David means our Creator is a place of safety. Just like a rock offers shade and cover, so God offers protection to his people.

Just as a rock is good to build on, so God is our solid foundation. Like a rock, God is immovable - our safe place where we can go when all else have rejected us - where we have been abandoned and alone.

We have talked about BEING abandoned but how about you? Are you taking care of what is yours?

Our society makes it so easy to abandon our responsibilities!  Our society today says:- are you tired of your spouse?  then get a divorce. Up to your neck in debt? Declare bankruptcy. Feeling tied down in your job? walk away - easy!

The problem is that abandoning your responsibilities doesn't make them disappear. If you don't take care of what is yours, someone else will pay the price.

I have been so convicted lately of just how much damage a 'ME FIRST' attitude can have. The Bible is choc-a-bloc full of stories that help us recognise the damage of what a ME FIRST attitude can do - to others and to ourselves.

So if being abandoned and rejected is truly horrible and inexplicable then how about being the one who abandons and rejects? We have to take responsibility for our actions and how those actions can have a HUGE impact on the lives of other people.

So there we have it - whatever side of the wall you are at the moment - abandoned, or even planning to abandon, then take a leaf out Psalm 27; written all those years ago by David who knew what it was like to be on both sides of the wall at the same time.

Rejection is horrible and nasty no matter from what angle you look at it; it really has no 'nice' bits at all. It can devastate the innocent and cause untold damage often irreparable. Families smashed and hearts broken forever.

Look to Jesus no matter where you are on the 'abandonment/rejection scale'.  He has the answer to all of your rejection problems - He will never leave us: he will never abandon us (Deut 31:6) is his promise to us regardless of what is happening in your life.

God bless you this week as you come to terms with your feelings of rejection.

If you are thinking of abandoning your responsibilities then please take responsibility for them instead. Then the guilt and shame that comes from abandonment won't be shared.  Matthew 18: 15-17 commands us to put it right and make it right and be reconciled.



Human love - super romantic and amazing!

Sometimes it is hard to give up on something you love - especially when that impinges on your family or your life in so many different ways ...