"Into The Unknown?"
Thursday 7th January 2010
Generally, when it comes to the future, we obsess about what we don't know, rather than what we do.
The Christian has the Divinely gifted privilege of knowing a lot more about the future than we often appreciate. I believe in prophecy; but that's not what I am speaking of here. I am referring to God's Revealed Will for us personally.
Deuteronomy 29:29, "The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law".
Most of God's will for us has been given directly to us in the Scriptures, yet, so often we are preoccupied and distracted by what we don't know.
Let me give you three certainties concerning God's will for you this New Year, if you are a born again child of God:
- It is God's will to presence Himself with you:
Deuteronomy 31:8, "And the LORD, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed". - It is God's will to make you a stronger and more mature believer:
Philippians 1:6, "Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ" - It is God's will to make you Holy:
1 Thessalonians 4:3, 5:23 "For this is the will of God, even your sanctification,...And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ".
These are only three examples from thousands of Scriptures that reveal what God wants for us. Get searching and start realising God's plan for your life.
May God help us, by faith, to claim these declarations of God's will for us, that we might enter into the blessings He has promised and prepared for us to enjoy!
Have a Happy and Holy New Year in the "good, acceptable and perfect will of God"!
"Immanuel: God With Us!"
Tuesday 1st December 2009
Yes, we all know what Immanuel means, and, if we have forgotten, this month we are sure to be reminded. However, how many of us are experiencing Immanuel: 'God with us'?
Not only did God come to be with us in the Incarnation of the Son, but, God has come to indwell us by the impartation of the Spirit. Now, post-Pentecost, God can be with us because He can be in us. But how much of this are we experiencing in our lives and in our churches? Paul desired that the Ephesians would be "filled with all the fullness of God" and of course he later speaks about the Fullness of the Holy Spirit. How does our experience measure up to such teaching?
Many Christians are not experiencing a sense of God with them because they have never allowed God to fill them.
When a man or woman is filled by God's Spirit, others will be heard to remark: "Truly God is with him/her". When churches are empowered by the Spirit, even unbelievers will be heard to exclaim, falling on their faces "God is truly among you" (1 Corinthians 14:25).
There is a distinct absence of a sense of the presence of God in our individual lives and in our churches. The good news is that with repentance and faith we can rediscover it again to the glory of God and our benefit.
The Revival Conferences in Dublin and Wales were both an exercise in assessing how great the need is to rediscover the presence of God with us. Also these Conferences were an exercise in discovering how deep the desire is to experience God's presence again. Both conferences were a blessing and there is a great hunger for God's presence among some people. The Conference in Loughor, Wales, however, proved to be an exceptional blessing as, in a measure, we encountered the presence of God, and felt His holy dealings in our lives. In many respects I think some of us 'turned a corner' in Wales as God truly was affirming, confirming and reaffirming many burdens in the hearts of those who long for genuine Revival. May whatever God did in our lives in Wales not be lost, but remain, and increase, bearing fruit to the glory of God and the good of mankind in future days.
We rejoice in droplets of blessing in all aspects of ministry and we always are encouraged and overjoyed when hearing of souls saved. A married couple who we requested prayer for at Ballyclare have been saved and a young woman in Lurgan trusted Christ. God is at work and yet we know He can and He wants to do more. May we experience it soon – for how the Church and our lands need Jesus.
"A Sigh of Relief"
Monday 2nd November 2009
"We finish our years like a sigh" - Psalm 90:9b
As you approach the end of this year and maybe you think of all your plans still outstanding, or you consider the things that didn't turn out according to plan, perhaps you 'sigh'. I think for many the year often ends with a sigh, even if only one of exhaustion! For others the sigh is more tragic and despairing. The famous playwright Samuel Beckett conveyed this attitude to life in his play 'Breath'. The play lasts 30 seconds and there are no actors or conversation. The whole script is the sigh of human life from a baby's cry to a man's last breath before he dies. Such despair is everywhere today.
Isn't it wonderful to know that though we, as God's children, might know the sighs of life and death, they are all couched (as this verse is in this Psalm) in the Sovereign Providence of our Great God!: "LORD, You have been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, Or ever You had formed the earth and the world, Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God" - Psalm 90:1-3.
Faith views all our 'sighs' in the context of the character of our Good, Kind and All-Provident God.
As a family, in all matters, we continue to rejoice in, and testify to, the faithfulness of our All-Provident Father.
Lydia and Noah are settling well into their schools in Portadown and are starting to make friends. We are gradually getting our new house into 'ship-shape'.
We enjoyed a great Evangelistic Mission in Ballyclare in September and praise the Lord for His moving in the lives of both unbelievers and believers. Do continue to pray for a number of unbelievers who were counselled and are seriously considering trusting the Lord. At Ballyclare I was very encouraged and excited about the hunger that the believers had to experience reality in their Christian lives, to be more effective in their outreach and to go deeper in their relationship with the Lord. I pray they will find the "waters to swim in"!
As you can see from the itinerary, the remainder of the year is very busy with all kinds of events. I am especially looking forward to the Revival Conferences (see previous blog post) – how the British Isles needs revival and wouldn't it be wonderful if it started in the Republic of Ireland!