Sunday, January 28, 2018

Eyes Wide Open

Hello Everyone,

In Exodus 33, we find a remarkable encounter between Moses and his God.  Moses has come to the place where he is convinced that on his own, without the presence of God, he is weak and insufficient to complete his mission, and unwilling to go any further from where he currently is.  Look at verses 14 & 15, “And the Lord said, My Presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest. And Moses said to the Lord, If Your Presence does not go with me, do not carry us up from here!”  So Strong was Moses’ intent on not moving outside of God’s tangible presence, that he insists God gives him clear evidence that He will be with him. Moses asks God for a physical sign of Himself, something tangible that will leave its mark and be a deliberate ‘tell tale’ of God’s presence on him and the people.  So he puts it ‘out there’ and asks God to show him His glory; knowing full well that anyone in the midst of God’s glory cannot escape being visibly changed by it.  Look at verse18, “And Moses said, I beseech You, show me Your glory.”  

God’s response is both willing and immediate, and He gives Moses what he asks for, but perhaps not in the way Moses, or you and I would expect.  verse 19 tells us that God shows Moses His glory, by letting him see His goodness. “And God said, I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim My name, THE LORD, before you; for I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy and loving-kindness on whom I will show mercy and loving-kindness.”

As born again, children of God, we have been given the precious gift of the presence and glory of God, His Holy Spirit, indwelling us. He has promised to never leave us and to guide and teach us His ways, and lead us into all truth.  Just as Moses and the children of Israel carried a tell-tale sign of His presence being with them, as His children, we do too.  That sign is what we should be expecting and experiencing every day of our lives: His goodness to us.

Irrespective of the circumstance we face, God’s Spirit is still residing in us and His goodness will continue to be evident in our lives, we just need to train and open our eyes to see it.  God is good, and when we begin each day thanking Him for Who He is to us, and ask Him to show His intervention in our lives throughout the day, we will be amazed at what we find!  Every act of kindness shown to us, every moment of peace, or display of beauty, that brings us joy.  The love in the eyes of a friend or the hug from your child.  All around us, and at every turn, we can expect to see the goodness of God at work in our lives, if we just stop focusing on the problems and open our eyes to see Him in the seemingly insignificant details of our day.

Let me remind you of a truth that gives every child of God the ‘permission’ to expect the goodness of God in our lives, just because we are His.   God’s greatest display of goodness ever shown to mankind was what Jesus did on the cross for us.  The fact that He was willing to go to that extreme to snatch us out of the devil’s clutches and make us His very own, tells us we have true value to Him. A value that says we are worth every drop of blood that was spilt.  

Now take a look at what Romans 8:31& 32 says, “What then shall we say to [all] this? If God is for us, who [can be] against us? [Who can be our foe, if God is on our side?] He who did not withhold or spare [even] His own Son but gave Him up for us all, will He not also with Him freely and graciously give us all [other] things?” 

Please go back and read the underlined part of that verse again.  This scripture is saying that God held nothing back when He gave us Jesus, His measure of goodness towards us was extreme.  So, now that we are His, how can we not expect Him to keep being good to us, just as freely and graciously, in all things we need now?

Take a look at what James 1:17 says, “Every good gift and every perfect (free, large, full) gift is from above; it comes down from the Father of all [that gives] light, in [the shining of] Whom there can be no variation [rising or setting] or shadow cast by His turning [as in an eclipse].”

God is good, He always was and He always will be good. There is no shadow of changing in Him. And while He lives in us, and we are choosing to yield to His presence inside us, His goodness will be evident and continuously at work in our lives.  

What about when it feels like the pressures of the world around us and our difficult circumstances are closing in, how do we see His goodness then?

When you can’t see His goodness around you, look for it where it can be found!  We have to begin to train ourselves to open the eyes of our hearts to the Word of God and see Him and His goodness towards us in it!  When we take the time to look for our Good God, Who is our Good Shepherd, in His Word, we will find Him.  And when that truth comes in through what we read and hear, and we allow it to sink into our hearts, it begins to go to work in and for us.  Slowly but surely, we begin to think as He thinks and see things from His perspective and our words begin to line up with His words and we start to believe and expect what His Word says we can believe and expect.

God told Moses that He would see His goodness displayed in His Name that would always go before them, in His grace, His mercy and His loving kindness towards them.  As His children, we carry His Name.  It’s the Name that is above all others, and holds all authority over every force and circumstance.  At the Name of Jesus, every knee will bow and come into submission to His will.  Sickness will flee and every bondage and burden will be removed and destroyed at the mention of it, as its spoken out in faith.  

His grace and mercy and loving kindness are freely extended to us, all the time, wherever we go.  We simply need to turn our eyes to Him and His Word and see it, breath it in, drink deep of its truth, believe it, and be satisfied by it.  Let it nourish our souls, energise our spirits and quicken our bodies.  

Because you are His, and He lives in you, you can choose to have your eyes wide open to see His goodness. 

All my love,

Jenny


Sunday, January 21, 2018

Our Good Shepherd


Hello everyone,

We have begun a journey together, to know what God wants for our lives, and to walk in that, every day of this year.  I absolutely love this, because I know that His ways are perfect and just, and that His plans concerning us are good!  In fact, they are greater than we could ever dream or imagine!  So needless to say, I’m certainly eager and ready to learn and live out whatever God has on His mind for me, as I am sure you are too!

Obviously the very best way to learn what we need to know about God’s desire for our lives, is by going to the Word of God.  I believe God’s Word is the ultimate truth and final authority of our lives, and we can completely trust its wisdom.  I also believe It is alive, and has the power to transform us from the inside out! (2 Corinthians  3:18).  When we welcome God’s Word into our hearts, it’s not just knowledge gained, but life and truth infused into us, with the purpose of bringing change!  

The Holy Spirit, alive inside of every believer, is constantly at work, causing the Word we receive and believe, to have its supernatural influence on us. (Galatians 5:22; Ephesians 3:20; 2 Corinthians 6:1 AMPC). So when we love and value God’s Word, which holds His purpose for us, and we receive it, and believe it; it goes to work, by His Spirit inside us, producing exactly what it says, in our lives.  Quite a mouthful I know, but let it sink in for a moment.  I can’t over emphasis how powerful and active God’s Word is, and how it will always produce its purpose in our lives.  

You see, God’s intension for each one of us, is to see His Word go to work and transform us into His very image.  Even though our born again spirits have been miraculously recreated in Christ, it’s our thoughts, our emotions and our wills that must be transformed each day, so we can experience His fullness in our every day lives as we live for Him.  So, since living in Christ is His perfect will for us, it only makes sense to know Him more, and to become intimately acquainted with His character and the way He feels about us.  

In my previous letter, I wrote about how God loves and values us so much, that He bought and paid for us, to become His very own. And that the goodness He demonstrated in that act, is only the beginning of the good things He has in store for us, as we willingly, and thankfully surrender our lives to Him, every day.  And even this is something we don’t have to struggle to do on our own.  Jesus Himself, through His Holy Spirit within us, has promised to personally lead us each day, to walk in His ways.  And His ways are good!

In John 10:14, Jesus declares, “I am the Good Shepherd; and I know and recognise My own, and My own know and recognise Me—...”.  Two important truths stand out for me in this verse, firstly, that Jesus is good, and secondly, just as we are recognised and known by Him, He is recognised and known by us.

Since our primary purpose is to know our God more, in this letter, I would like to spend some time getting to know Him as our Good Shepherd. I believe this will help us to confidently trust, and surrender every aspect of our lives to the Lord, including the responsibility of them! That means when we realize our finances, every material possession, our spouse, our children, and even our bodies are His; we can trust Him to take good care of everything that concerns us, because He is our Good Shepherd! (Psalm 138:8).

And it’s His goodness that will always satisfy us and bring us great joy, irrespective of what we face in this life.  When we know we belong to God, and are under His protection and His provision, we always have a hope that His good intention concerning us, is exactly what our outcome will be, as we trust Him and follow His lead.

I read a PERSPECTIVE REMINDER, written by Dr. Michelle Strydom, which  shows how powerful and essential it is for us to know how good our Shepherd is, and just how good His intentions towards us are.  (I have adapted some grammar in her sentences for the purpose of better clarification).

She wrote, “When a crisis situation comes that would tend to disturb us (rob us of peace and take us into fear and anxiety), and our adrenal glands are fired up to produce stress hormones in reaction to that, it is because we anticipate that we are on the brink of one more loss or are on the verge of yet another destructive course that has the potential to devour our lives. 

However, we can become immune to many of these stressful assaults on our spirit, soul and body that cause the adrenal glands to fire up, if we learn to filter every situation that comes into our lives, whether initially perceived as good or bad, through the grid of the Father.   If we can renew our minds to His covenant with us (His Word and the nature of His character) – we can have the peaceful assurance that God’s primary heart and intention is not for our destruction, it is for our restoration.”

In other words, when we really know and recognise our Shepherd, in a way that distinguishes Him as being good, every thought or situation we face in life, can be measured up against His character, including His willingness and ability to take care of us.   Doesn’t this remind you of Romans 8:31&32“What then shall we say to [all] this? If God is for us, who [can be] against us? [Who can be our foe, if God is on our side?] He who did not withhold or spare [even] His own Son but gave Him up for us all, will He not also with Him freely and graciously give us all [other] things?” AMPC

John 10:14, gives us something we can use as an indicator to recognise the character of our Shepherd.   Jesus said He is the Good Shepherd.  I believe, we can recognise and know Him by His goodness! 

But what is God’s goodness? I believe, if we look at the scriptures, we will get a very clear picture of what His goodness really looks like.  And as we renew our minds to it, we will be able to grow our expectation and faith to receive and experience it in our lives. 

In next weeks letter, we are going to look at one particular scripture that describes God’s goodness towards us.  This week, I’d like to share something David wrote, it shows us how he relied on the dependable character of His Good Shepherd, and how knowing and expecting His goodness gave him the hope and strength he needed to get through very difficult times.  David used God’s character as the grid to filter his challenges through,  the scale by which each trial could be weighed or measured against.  And each time, God’s goodness towards him far outweighed what was against him.  As His children, who were bought and paid for by His own blood, we can also expect His goodness towards us to outweigh any situation we face.

Psalm 27:13&14, “[What, what would have become of me] had I not believed that I would see the Lord’s goodness in the land of the living! Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord.”

Recognize and trust in His goodness to take care of your every need this week.

Much love,

Jenny











Sunday, January 14, 2018

You Are Worthy of His Goodness

Hello Everyone,

In our quest to really live out God’s best for us, I found a treasure of a teaching from Jeremy Pearsons that has blessed my socks off, and it couldn’t have come at a more appropriate time in my life!  It has inspired me to be extra vigilant to keep my mind renewed to what God has made available to me through the cross of Jesus.  Having said that, I want to remind you today that whatever good things God has purposed and wants us to enjoy in this life, He has already provided and secured for us on the cross.  Every covenant promise is a gift to us because of what Jesus accomplished over 2000 years ago. That means we can’t acquire a promise by our own efforts or good works.  No, every good and perfect promise is a gift of grace to us, and our appropriate response is to accept it with thankful hearts that are full of faith!

This week, the gift I felt the Holy Spirit impress on my heart to share with you, is the gift of knowing, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that we belong to God.  We are His, totally, completely and thoroughly His!  Hallelujah!!

According to 1 Corinthians 6:20, “You were bought with a price [purchased with a preciousness and paid for, made His own].”  This is a ‘treasure truth’ I want us to renew our minds to this week!  

Please read this next part of my letter carefully, don’t rush through it, I don’t want you to miss the treasure that will significantly impact your life. When God gave His all, through Jesus, so that we could be bought and paid for, He believed wholeheartedly, that we were worth the cost!  God’s greatest display of goodness ever shown to mankind was what Jesus did on the cross for us.  The fact that He was willing to go to that extreme to snatch us out of the devil’s clutches and make us His very own, tells us we have true value to Him. A value that said we are worth every drop of blood that was spilt.  

Now take a look at what Romans 8:31& 32 says, “What then shall we say to [all] this? If God is for us, who [can be] against us? [Who can be our foe, if God is on our side?] He who did not withhold or spare [even] His own Son but gave Him up for us all, will He not also with Him freely and graciously give us all [other] things?” 

Please go back and read the underlined part of that verse again.  This scripture is saying that God held nothing back when He gave us Jesus, His measure of goodness towards us was extreme.  So, now that we are His, how can we not expect Him to keep being good to us, just as freely and graciously, in all things we need now?

Oh goodness!!!!  Did you get that?  Here, let me put it this way for you to grasp the truth again: Your value and worth to God today, is just as it was the day He bought and paid for you.  And what a price He paid!  He gave up the life of His only begotten Son, the most precious possession He had.   And both Father and Son, paid most willingly and graciously, even though it cost them everything.  They did it because they believed you and I, were worth it. 

But their goodness towards us didn’t stop there, nor has its intensity slacked off. No, the expectation we are to have concerning God’s goodness towards us, is to be of the same measure it was given at the cross.  And we are to expect it in all things concerning us, especially now that we are His!  The truth is, His goodness towards us today comes out of the goodness He has already done for us on the cross!

The bottom line is that we belong to God, and His intentions towards us have and always will be extremely good!  That’s because He believes we are worth it, regardless of what we or anyone else believes.  And that is something we must not only be assured of, but must be expectant for.  Let this truth resonate with you this week, I know I’m certainly going to embrace it and make it my own each day.

All my love,

Jenny





Sunday, January 7, 2018

Let’s Really Live this Journey of Life!


Happy New Year!

Just in case you were expecting me to write about a long list of New Year’s resolutions we should all probably consider trying and sticking to, let me put you at ease, I’m not going to.  I do however want to share what I would love to see happen in my life this year:  In 2018, I want us to really live this journey of life just as Christ has purposed us to live it!  Nothing less, by any means!  But for this to become our reality, we have to be very sure of what life He has in mind for us.  So over the next  52 weeks (give or take a few), we’re going to dig into the treasure of God’s Word to discover and renew our minds to what His purpose is concerning us, so that we can confidently stand on His truth to attain it!  And what a journey it’s going to be!

I am so grateful for the Word.  Beside it being the ultimate truth, the life and peace that flows from it each time we choose to make it our own and believe it as God’s final authority concerning us, is invaluable.  Countless times, the Word has been all I have had to hold onto, my only hope in so many of life’s unpredictable twists and turns.  God’s promises to us are indispensable, they are His perfect will for us along this ever changing journey we travel in this fallen world.  To not know our covenant promises is to live without real hope; causing us to be helplessly tossed from once circumstance to the next, subject to whatever they dictate and limit us to.  

Now that’s not living!  And it’s certainly not what Jesus paid the price of His very Own life for either.  No, in John 10:10, He said, “The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows).”  That doesn’t just mean life in heaven, when we leave the earth.  Nor does it refer to only spiritual well-being.  The abundant life Jesus provided for us to live in Includes provision, peace and joy in every area of our lives, be it spiritual, mental or physical.  Jesus declared, “I am [Myself] the Resurrection and the Life. Whoever believes in (adheres to, trusts in, and relies on) Me, although he may die, yet he shall live; And whoever continues to live and believes in (has faith in, cleaves to, and relies on) Me shall never [actually] die at all.” (John 11:25-26).  The resurrection life Jesus is offering all who continue to live and believe in Him, is a promise of the full, abundant life we can have in intimately knowing Him and His Word while we are here, travelling through the journey of life on earth. 

So since it is God’s will for us to live a full, satisfied and abundant life, how do we practically manage to do this in a world that is so unpredictable and full of constant challenges?  Life is messy and bad things happen to all people.  How do we really live this journey without being victims to the circumstances that constantly threaten to steal what has been promised us? I know for a fact that to remain in a place of hopeful faith, and in the safety of supernatural peace, and soul strengthening joy; I must be careful to constantly give myself to the things of God.  I must surround myself with His Word.  You see, the Word was inspired by God Himself.  That means on each page, from beginning to end, if we open the eyes of our hearts to it, we will find the Spirit of God and His great love for us woven into every truth.  And it’s really not difficult for us to do this!  A wonderful advantage of technology today, is we have access to powerful, Holy Spirit inspired teachings on the Word!  We can plug our earphones into our devices and hear the Word while we do our daily chores, or travel from place to place.  We can download excellent reading material that fills us with the truth of God’s Word.  I always find when I’m listening to the Word being taught, or reading what it says, my entire being becomes washed by its truth.  It heals, refreshes and restores my hope and trust in the Lord and His faithfulness towards me.

Time and again I’ll be in tears as the Holy Spirit tenderly ministers to me while I’m reading or listening to teachings on Him and His Word, whether at home or travelling in my car.  One place the Holy Spirit ministers the Word to me and reinforces me with hope and inner strength has been on the airplane.  There is no limit to where and when the Holy Spirit can make God’s Word alive and powerfully vital to us.

My encouragement to you this week, is to decide to up the time and attention you give to the Word of God in your own journey of life.  If you are anything like me, and truly desire to live this journey I’ve been given just as God intended for me to live; then we need to make knowing Him and His will for us our first priority.  

To be extremely practical, go before the Lord and set a goal to spend a certain amount of uninterrupted time with Him, in His Word each day this week.  And trust Him to help you stick to it.  Don’t go overboard and make it a legalistic chore, you’ll kill the joy and excitement before you even begin!  

As you carefully listen to, or read what He leads you to each day, be sure to spend a few moments reflecting and meditating on it.  Then, before you carry on with the responsibilities of the day, be sure to write something down about it.  Anything you felt the Holy Spirit touch your heart with.  You may be inspired to practically do something with the truth He highlighted to you, even encourage someone else with it during your day.  When you do, it will anchor that truth even more securely inside your heart and mind, and it will become your truth!  

I have no doubt, that if you choose to follow this simple pattern of spending time with Him each day, you will discover how real and powerful His Word can be in your life.  You will also be obeying exactly what Jesus said we must do to live in the fullness He has for us, along this journey of life.  You will be abiding in Him!  One day at a time, let’s move closer to knowing Him and really live this journey together!

Much love,

Jen