Thoughts for reflection . . . (Stayed)

One of the secrets of our walking in peace amidst every circumstance will be the governing of the direction and content of the thoughts of our minds.

The promise in Scripture is that 'He will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusts in Thee.'
[Is26.3-4]

The field of our mind is the scene of many a battle, the outcome of which will influence whether I live in faith or doubt, trust or worry and fear, humility or pride, in purity or lust. Uncontrolled, our mind can lead to us to a place of weakness, vulnerability and ultimate failure, yet a mind fenced in by the protection of the instruction of Scripture and whose thoughts are governed by the Holy Spirit will be as a city protected by defensive walls.
[2Cor10.3-5]

My mind must be stayed upon God, trusting in Him. In all times and seasons my thoughts should lean upon Him that has redeemed me. Thoughts of His greatness, faithfulness and mercy. Thoughts of His everlasting, ever abiding presence with me. Thoughts of the supreme King and Ruler over all, Who holds me in His hand.

Dwelling on the greatness of my God and King will shrink the size of the giants I face. Envisioning the bountifulness of the 'Lord who provides' will bring faith when in time of need. Thinking upon the One Who is mighty to save and deliver will endue me with courage to face that which would seek to bring fear into my life.
[Ps77.13, 86.10, 95.3, Gen22.14, Zeph3.17, Ps56.13]

May I renew my mind through God's Word, choosing to think on those things that are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, of good report, virtuous and praiseworthy, shutting my life and heart to those activities which would pollute and compromise my life in Christ, leaving me in a place of trust in God that results in ultimate peace.
[Phil4.8]

- sent from Palm T|T3

Thoughts for reflection . . . (Wind and Clouds)

Our lives as followers of Christ should be lives of fruitfulness. As a farmer would never expect a harvest without the planting of seed, so we also cannot expect to look for fruit and a harvest where the necessary labour has not been undertaken to see the desired results.
[John15.16, 1Cor3.8-9, 1Cor15.58, Col1.28-29, 1Thess3.5]

Fruitfulness requires action and obedience on our part. The Scripture declares that 'He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap.'
[Eccl11.4]

The spreading of the Gospel and extension of God's kingdom is one of the primary areas we should be looking for fruitfulness in our lives. However, it can be too easy for us to be observing the winds of change and storms around us and be waiting for circumstances to become more compliant before fulfilling our call as ambassadors for Christ. We need to be taking every opportunity to communicate the truths of the Gospel and sowing seeds of God's Word in the lives of those with whom we meet in this world.
[2Cor5.20]

Man's countenance can also be an obstacle to us going out to reap in the harvest that Jesus spoke of. The Lord said to Jeremiah, 'Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee.' We need to be set free from the fear of man so that we are not hindered in moving forward to see the advance of the kingdom of God. Not fearing people's reactions, nor trying to predict their responses, but reaching out with faith and expectation, remembering God's promise that He is with us and will never leave us.
[John4.35-38, Jer1.8, Ps118.6, Prov29.25, Heb13.5-6, Is41.10, Ps56.4]

Clouds of the storms of persecution and rejection may build. Clouds of difficulties and trials may cast their shadow over our lives, yet in the midst of such times God still has a harvest field for us to work in.

What other winds and clouds am I observing that are holding me back? May my focus not be on the atmosphere around me or the threatening skies that would try and bring fear and hesitation, but on the Lord of the harvest: the One to Whom the winds and storms must obey. With such focus may I then be a faithful witness and not shy away from declaring the truths that can set people free.
[Matt9.38, Mark4.41, John8.31-32,36]

- sent from Palm T|T3

Thoughts for reflection . . . (Dependence)

In the varied terrain of the circumstances of life that I pass through, am I walking with dependency upon God in all things, or is there independence in my life? Do I rely upon my own experience, wisdom, strength and determination to get me through the valleys, or to scale the mountain slopes of difficulties I face, or do I recognise and acknowledge my own limitations and therefore seek God for all I need?

The Scriptures show that a believer's position of strength, and the overcoming of what we face, comes through Christ and a total dependence upon God.
[2Cor4.7, Phil4.11-13, 1John4.4, Ps18.1-3, Prov3.5, Ps44.5-8, Ps55.22]

The Apostle Paul says, 'Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;'
[2Cor3.5]

Genuine trust in the Lord will be reflected by a total reliance upon Him. The purpose of our lives is to bring glory to God. God receives glory when I can look back on my life and point to Him being the source and foundation of all that was accomplished.
[1Cor10.31, 2Cor1.20, 2Cor4.15, Phil1.9-11, 1Cor4.11-15, Rom11.36]

Walking in independence places trust in my own abilities and finds it's roots in pride. Jesus said, 'for without Me ye can do nothing.' If we believe what Jesus said to be true, it will cause us to depend totally on Him, to abide closely to Him, to not seek to achieve anything through our own resources, but instead drawing on the treasures of provision that God has given us in Christ.
[John15.5]

May the testimony of my life be as stated by John the Baptist, 'He must increase, but I must decrease.' May all I do be in His strength and for His glory.
[John3.30, Col3.17, 1Cor10.31]

- sent from Palm T|T3

Thoughts for reflection . . . (Home)

There's a familiar expression that says, 'Home is where the heart is'. Jesus declared, 'Where your treasure is there will your heart be also.'
[Matt6.21,Luke12.34]

As I travel through this world, encountering the varied circumstances that make up the tapestry of my life, what do I consider home?

Is home to me limited only to the place I live, or maybe being in the presence of loved ones, such as family or friends? Or do I have a greater vision, one of an eternal home, in the presence of my Saviour for time without end? Where does my heart naturally incline to? What perspective influences me the most?

How I spend my time and energy, together with the way I think will either tie me to this world and shackle me to a worldly perspective, or it will bring focus on the unseen and free me into a life of preparation for the tomorrow that is coming, and the eternal home prepared for me.

The Lord's return or my going to meet Him may be many years hence, yet I need to be living as if it were tomorrow. Jesus said, 'Surely I come quickly', 'be ye also ready', 'watch therefore for ye know neither the day nor the hour', 'Watch therefore and pray always.'
[Rev21.20, Matt24.44, 25.13, Luke 21.36]

Jesus said that His return would be as in the days of Noah: eating, drinking, marrying, the normal activities of life taking place with people totally unawares of the pending 'end of things as they know it'. For the believer it should be different than for those of the world. With a pilgrim mentality and a heart focussed on preparation we should be in a continual state of readiness for the Lord's return, being about our Master's business.
[Matt24.38,1Pet2.11, Heb11.13, Luke12.35-38]

May my heart be drawn to the eternal, that I may be effective in the temporal. May my focus be on where I'm going and not from where I come. May I be sowing my life into those God directed activities which reap eternal reward.

- sent from Palm T|T3

Thoughts for reflection . . . (Assurance)

Entering a new year there is reason for having great assurance and hope in all that lies ahead of us.

The past year may have been a mixture of joy and sadness, it may have included times of ease or of great difficulty. Yet in the midst of every circumstance by knowing God through Jesus Christ we have an anchor fixed to a Rock that can never move.

As we look forward into the future, true peace, true joy, and hopeful expectation is to be found in God who is faithful.

He is the God who never changes, the One who rules over all, whose purposes will prevail. No matter the state of the world, or the apparent darkness on the horizon, our God IS God. In the midst of darkness, He is the Light. In the midst of weakness, He is the Rock of our strength. In the midst of uncertainty and despair, He is the Refuge of peace. In the storm, He can bring calm. When we stumble, He can pick us up. When hurting, He can heal. He is the All Sufficient One. His grace is more than enough for every situation and in the midst of our frailty, His mercies are new every morning.
[Deut7.9, Mal3.6, Heb13.8, Ps103.19, Dan4.25, Ps18.28, Ps62.7, Ps57.1-3, Deut10.17, Ps107.29-30, 1Sam2.2-4, Ps147.3, 2Cor9.8, 2Cor12.9, Ps103.14-17, Lam3.23]

As we advance into this coming year, may we know with unshakeable confidence that God goes ahead of us and is for us, His children. May we rest in Him, trust Him, rejoice in Him and allow the Light to shine out through us, showing the way for the world around us that they may find and come to know the Source of life - Jesus.

- sent from Palm T|T3

Thoughts for reflection . . . (Progress)

What progress am I making in my walk as a believer? Can I look back over this past year and see qualitative advancement in my life spiritually?

When we come to faith in Christ, our condition is as a newborn child and our life from that point on should be one of continual growth unto maturity and onward in the direction of perfection - the completeness of Christlikeness that God has purposed for us.
[Rom8.29, 2Cor13.9, Col1.28, Col4.12, Heb6.1, 1Pet5.10]

In Heb5.11-14 the believers were challenged about their lack of progress spiritually. The writer of Hebrews said they should by that time have been teachers, yet they still needed 'milk' food instead of meat.

How does my life compare?
Am I walking more closely to God than in the past? Am I gaining a deeper knowledge of God's Word and more importantly seeing that knowledge worked out practically in my daily living? Am I living to a greater level of holiness and eradicating worldliness in it's many subtle forms?

I need to be desiring God's Word and feeding on it in the same way as I would physical food for nourishment, growth and strength. Is God's Word having that place of priority in my daily life, so my life will be fruitful?
[1Pet2.2, Col3.16]

In 2Cor13.5 we are called to examine ourselves, to check our condition. We also see in the Lord's words to the Churches in Revelation, that He draws attention to their condition, calling them back to their first love, to be watchful, to strengthen that which remains, and to remember what had been received and heard. To not be lukewarm, and revealing the deception of not seeing their true state before Him.
[Rev2.4-5, 3.2-3,15-19]

I need to be taking stock of my life before God, making an honest assessment of my lifestyle, character and ways. I need to be vulnerable before the Lord so that He can point out areas of progress and show me where greater progress and change needs to be seen.

May I never be standing still but always moving forward unto conformity to the Lord Jesus.

- sent from Palm T|T3

Thoughts for reflection . . . (Alignment)

The Christian life is one of walking in the grace of God. We can never earn the rights to God's favour through our own righteousness and achievements. All we will ever receive from God both now and throughout eternity is solely on account of Christ Jesus and all He has done for us.
[Eph2.8-9]

Yet the Scriptures have many examples that show we need to bring our lives into alignment with what God has spoken in order to experience the fulness of the life we see available to us in His Word.

I can be desiring many things from God, wishing to see much change in my own life and circumstances around me, but is my life aligned with the promises I wish to see unfold in my life and the conditions that accompany them? Is my life conforming to God's Word or conforming to the pattern of this world?
[Rom12.2]

Each day I may desire to walk in God's protection, to know His healing power in my physical frame, to experience His strength, to know the blessings of answered prayer, to see His will performed in my life.

But in order to see those desires fulfilled, am I seeking to dwell in the secret place of the most high God? Am I full of faith and expelling doubt? Do I wait upon the Lord in expectation and trust at all times and especially in times of weakness? Am I keeping His commandments and doing those things that are pleasing in His sight?
[Ps91.1-2,3-16, Matt9.21-22, Luke17.19, Jam5.15, Heb11.6, Is40.31, 1John3.22-23]

God's promises are the ground that faith walks on, but the accompanying conditions are like a permit that gives access to the ground of the promise.

Through the operation of God's grace, by faith may I take hold of His promises and walk consistently in their conditions. Hence aligning my life so that I may have the joy of seeing God work His Word into the fabric of my life.

- sent from Palm T|T3

Thoughts for reflection . . . (Wisdom)

As believers in the world in which we live, we need an abundance of wisdom to walk safely and securely amidst the dangers to our souls. We need wisdom to navigate through a world of temptations and snares that would corrupt and defile us, and cripple our walk in God.
[Prov1.20,33, Prov3.21-23, Prov28.26, Is33.6, Eph5.15-17, Prov2.10-17]

The world is limited to operating in it's own wisdom. A wisdom that doesn't know or acknowledge God. A wisdom derived from sense and reason. Yet in Christ we have treasures of true wisdom available to us. We have the privilege of access to the wisdom of the only wise God.
[1Cor1.21, Col2.3, 1Cor1.30, Jam1.5, Prov2.6-7, 1Tim1.17]

Am I drawing on that divine wisdom, or content with walking only on the level of the world's wisdom? Do I seek after that wisdom from above or follow the counsel of the world?
[Ps1.1]

True wisdom starts with the fear of God, recognising His sovereignty and almighty power, submitting unto Him. It is received by faith and is therefore not measured on the same scales as that of the world's wisdom. God's ways and thoughts are far above our own and in the same way His wisdom so far excels man's that comparison is futile.
[Ps111.10, Prov9.10, 15.33, Jam1.5-6, Is55.8-9]

When God's wisdom flows in us, it will be known by the character it develops. A character of meekness. A character that is pure, peaceable, gentle, easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.
[Jam3.13,17]

May I recognise my need of daily wisdom, choosing not to draw it from the wells of the world's supply but going to the Source that never runs dry. Then in all my dealings in this world may I see the fruit of walking in the wisdom and counsel of God.

- sent from Palm T|T3

Thoughts for reflection . . . (Boundaries)

What sort of framework am I building my life within? In Hosea 5.4 God speaks of Ephraim and Israel as those that 'will not frame their doings to turn unto their God.'

How am I ordering my life? Is the structure of my life focussed around growing in the knowledge of God or consumed with worldly affairs? Am I seeing my life as a time of preparation for an eternity that Jesus has gone ahead of me to prepare, or am I shortsighted, only concentrating on the here and now?
[Phil3.7-11,18-19, 1John3.2-3, 2Pet1.9-11]

A frame defines the boundary of a picture. How do I define the boundaries of my life? How do I judge what is acceptable for me as a follower of Christ and what is compliant with the high calling that I have received in following Him?

The boundaries of my life should not be the cold stones of legalism and regulation but borders drawn up from relationship with Christ as the map and His Word as the markers.

May my life be steered according to the principles of seeking to live by what brings direct pleasure to the Lord and what edifies and strengthens me in my walk with Him.
[Col1.10-11]

- sent from Palm T|T3

Thoughts for reflection . . . (Change)

Am I open to change in my life? Am I looking to see my circumstances change or me to change within my circumstances?

Our journey as believers in Christ should be one of perpetual change. A genuine salvation experience results in a radical change of one's life. It moves us out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God's Son, changing us from a lifestyle that ends in death to a new pathway that leads to life. Changing from glory to glory, from faith to faith. A pathway that gets brighter and brighter.
[Eph5.8, Col1.13, 2Cor3.18, Rom1.17, Prov4.18]

Such should be my experience, but the enemy of our souls would lure us into getting comfortable with where we have attained, causing us to become resistant to change and blinding us from seeing the deeper consecration we are called to and the ongoing pursuit of holiness that is needed.
[Heb12.14, Rev3.15-18]

The goal of our lives is to know Christ, to become like Him - a life long experience. Taking our focus off the goal set before us will remove the point of reference for our lives. It will remove the plumbline against which we should be building and leave us without a compass to know where we are.

I need to always have an attitude of humility and an openness to see my spiritual progress in the light of the Scriptures and be willing to realign myself. I need to be letting go and forsaking those things in my life which are unlike Christ Jesus, changing what I do and how I speak, never settling, ever moving onward, until God brings to completion the work He began in me and takes me into the glorious eternity He has prepared for us.
[Phil1.6, Ps138.8, John14.3, 1Thess4.17]

- sent from Palm T|T3