Are you getting ready?

 

I read a quote today that made me stop and think.

“How can we want to spend eternity with God,

 but we can’t even spend an hour with him now?”

At one time in my life, I would have responded with a huge “OUCH”. But I am so happy that God has done such a work in my heart, albeit through countless trials (I’m a slow learner), that I now crave time spent with God and in his Word. One hour is never long enough!

And no, I don’t have it all figured out and I’m not trying to appear any more spiritual than anyone reading this. It has taken years, and I mean YEARS for me to arrive at this point. Sadly, I neglected study of God’s Word for far too long and so as I get older the urge to study and learn is strong and I know I will be playing ‘catch-up’ til I die, and still not even scratch the surface of the treasures to be found in the Bible.

As I look around me, and as I meet with other Christians and connect through phone calls and texts and over social media, I am beginning to see a sad trend amongst believers. The desire for God’s Word and gaining knowledge and understanding through the pages of scripture is not high on the list of to dos for so many. I fear that there are many Christians that don’t desire even ten minutes alone with the Lord, let alone an hour!

Yes, they’re very busy in their programs and groups, but actually sitting alone in silence, reading the Word, looking at context and culture, trying to understand and listening to God speak, is not really a priority.

They are content to fellowship on a regular basis, listen to the preacher expound the truth, letting him do all the hard work of in-depth study and prayer, and yet they have no desire to do it themselves.

Often, so many are content to scroll on social media for hours on end, and yes, I am guilty of this too, and yet they neglect consistent time spent with God. They neglect working on their relationship with God through being in his Word.

Some friends and I are at present, working through a book on the importance of studying the Word of God. Now I know I have written a lot on this topic in previous posts, so I won’t go into depth on the subject, but hear me out. If you don’t have any desire or interest in spending time with God now, on this earth, where you need him the most, as you battle through your days, how in the world do you expect to enjoy an eternity of worshipping at his feet?

The Bible is a book about God. How can you get to know him if you never read it? How will you know why he is worthy of your worship if you don’t learn of his character? How will you understand what is going on in our world and what is to come if you don’t dig into the harder passages in your Bible?

If you’re not keen on spending time with him now, why would you want to spend an eternity with him?

Sounds harsh, I know. But have you ever taken the time to think about it?

I love to sing songs about Heaven, and there are many that have me tearing up each and every time I sing them. I love to sing about that great day when he calls us home. I love to sing about the promised place we have with him.

The thought of leaving this earth for an eternity so vastly different than anything we can even imagine is mind boggling.

I know that I’ve been guilty of looking forward to Heaven because it means leaving this messed up world and all its troubles. But the real reason we should look forward to Heaven is because God, the creator of all things, is there!

Yes, we’ll be away from the cares of this world, there will be no tears, no heartaches, no pain, no sorrow (Revelation 21:4), but the most awesome, wonderful, glorious part of Heaven will be God’s presence! For all eternity! A never-ending infinite period of time in which every day we can spend in praise and worship of God, in person, in the flesh, face to face. (1 Corinthians 13:12)

Shouldn’t we start practicing spending time with him now? Don’t you think that the more time you spend in the Word now, getting to know him more and more, will only set your soul on fire and create a greater desire for his eternal presence to come?

More often than not, when you came to Christ, you came with a limited knowledge of God. We come to faith in God on very little information. We understand that we need his forgiveness and his grace, and we may understand that he is good, but until we have made a study of him, we don’t really ‘know’ him.

How are we supposed to nurture and grow our relationship with him without study of him? And how do we do this? By getting into the Word. As we grow in the knowledge of his character through in depth study of his Word, the result is a deeper love for him.

As we learn more about him and his character, we learn more about ourselves and we realise we fall short. Knowing this causes us to change things in our lives, to let God do his purifying work. Making us more like Christ with each passing day and with each look into the mirror of his Word. The light of his Word reveals the dark places in our hearts and a process of sanctification begins.

You will only be transformed by the Word of God by the amount of time you spend in it. If you never study it, you can’t be transformed by it.

Soak yourself in God’s Word and let him do a purifying work in your heart and soul and mind, cleaning you from the inside out, making you more like Christ.

Read it. Study it. Love it. Live it. Share it.

And when you get to Heaven, all you have learnt about Christ, all you know of his character will give you cause to worship and for all eternity you will never run out of things to praise him for.

Revelation 4:8, 11 KJV - And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come. ... Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.

 

I am so Blessed

Well, another year has past, and another Mother’s Day is here! I am not in the habit of posting an annual tribute to Mothers, but this year I wanted to step into this space to take the time to brag on my beautiful daughters.

I know it’s Mother’s Day and it is a day where we traditionally celebrate Mothers, but I am only a Mother because of the amazing children God gifted my husband and I with.

Beginning way back in 1996, welcoming our first daughter, Lauren, into the world and then Abigail in 1998, Emilee in 2000, Madeline in 2001 and finally, Chloe, in 2003.

What a crazy, wild, rollercoaster ride it has been!

They say that Mother’s hold their children’s hands for a little while, but their hearts forever, and a truer statement in regard to motherhood, has never been said!

It seems that only yesterday I began my motherhood journey and walked through days of babies, toddlers, homeschooling, learning to drive, navigating teen years and occupations and finally adulthood for each of them.

Motherhood is a very challenging and yet rewarding occupation, if I can call it that, and raising children is a great responsibility and one we should never take lightly. When God calls you to motherhood, you begin shaping little lives and future generations. Will you train them to follow after Christ or will they chase the world? It’s a daunting task and one that needs God’s wisdom each and every day.

I would love to write pages and pages on each of our daughters, reliving moments, and singing their praises, but it would be hard to know how much to share for each of them, not wanting any of them to feel left out.

But what I can say is this,

I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth. 3 John 1:4

It is only by God’s grace that we are blessed to see each of our daughters walking in truth. They have a heart to serve the Lord and a desire to walk in his ways. Yes, they’ve faced their share of challenges, one of them being learning to live with their mum and her failings, but they have weathered it well and learnt to rely on the Lord to be their strength, their guide, their counsellor and their help.

God has blessed three of them (so far) with wonderful husbands who match their desire for God and lead their families well. Our hearts overflow with thankfulness for God’s goodness to us and them.

When I married the love of my life, back in 1995, I had no idea what God had in store for me. I didn’t know what the future would hold. I only knew that I always wanted to be a mother. I loved babies and knew I wanted some of my own.

I did not know, however, how much work it would be. I didn’t realise what an awesome responsibility I would be facing and how much my heart would burst as I looked into their sweet little faces in those first few moments after their birth.

I didn’t understand the frustration of not knowing what to do when tensions rose, or sickness came, or sleepless nights abounded.  

I couldn’t fathom just how much of God’s wisdom I would need in raising little ones, teaching and training them, exemplifying a Godlike character, modelling Christlikeness and growing in my own spiritual walk, trying to squeeze in quiet times with the Lord and quality time with my husband. It was such a juggle of priorities and yes, at times, it was downright hard. And there were days when I wondered if they would remember all my failings or would forgive my anger or bad attitude.

I have many regrets when it comes to my faults and the mistakes I made, but God is a God who forgives, and he restores and renews and sends along new mercies each morning.

Despite the hard times, there were so many beautiful memories made that I cherish to this day, and if I had to go back and do it all again, I would!

My daughters are a source of blessing in my life, and I love how the dynamic of our relationship has changed over the years. We have grown in our relationships from Mother to friend. Although I will always be ‘Mum’, it’s beautiful when you become a ‘friend’.

I am so proud of my daughters’ accomplishments in life, work, ministry, marriage, child raising, spiritual growth, relationships and so much more.

They each have unique personalities and gifts and talents that God has blessed them with and praise God they are learning to use them for him. I give all the credit to God for this.

I may have taught them the basics in life and given them a start in their education, but it is God who has done the greatest work. In the process of growing them, he has grown me.

Motherhood has a way of changing you.

And so, I say, to each of my daughters, you have helped to soften me, and teach me. You have pushed me to draw closer to God. The paths I have been down because of the uncertainty I faced only drew me to my knees in prayer and to my Father’s side. You have helped me see the importance of chasing God’s wisdom and guidance. You have made me dig into God’s Word for answers. You have taught me patience. You have taught me to love and to give. You have taught me how to comfort and show compassion. And I am forever grateful.

I love you. Always and forever.

 Psalm 127:3

 Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.

“Being a Mother is not about what you gave up to have a child, but what you’ve gained from having one”

 The Never-Ending Mercies of God

 

Lamentations 3:22-23 KJV - It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.

There is a beautiful chorus, written a few years ago, that comes to mind every so often and I find myself singing it and playing its lovely melody occasionally as I sit at the piano.

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,
His mercies never come to an end.
They are new ev’ry morning, new ev’ry morning,
Great is Thy faithfulness, O Lord,
Great is Thy faithfulness.

The song is based on the verses found in the third chapter of the Book of Lamentations.

The book of Lamentations is not a book I read often, with its woeful descriptions of Jerusalem’s downfall, and yet it holds great hope for God’s people. It was written by Jeremiah, often called the ‘weeping prophet’ (Lam. 3:48-49), because of his passion for the people and their city and the many tears he shed on their behalf.

It is a book of laments (a passionate expression of grief or sorrow) over the fall of Jerusalem caused by the sinful condition of Judah. Lamenting is something we avoid and not a word we use commonly, but in ancient times, it was a very real thing.

The people of Judah were experiencing God’s judgement because they refused to turn from their sin back to God.

The prophet Jeremiah wrote Lamentations in a time of grief and mourning after the once great city of Jerusalem fell to Babylon. God allowed the Babylonians to plunder, burn and destroy the city of Jerusalem because of their unwillingness to repent. Even Solomon’s temple, which had stood for 400 years, in all its splendour and glory, was burned to the ground. (2 Kings 25:9)

As you read through the book of Lamentations, the tone is that of despair, weeping, captivity, persecution and desolation. It’s not a pleasant book to read. And yet, as we make our way through the misery we read verse after verse, we finally come to chapter 3 and verse 21. And there, right in the middle of the book, like rain after drought, like the dawning of a new day, we read a beautiful passage of confidence and hope.

Jeremiah’s despair turns to hope.

Lamentations 3:21 KJV - This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope.

After all the expressions of sorrow and heartache, we begin to see a glimmer of hope. Jeremiah, even after all he’s seen, hasn’t given up on God. He still has hope.

Skip down to verses 24-26, and we’ll come back to 22 and 23 soon.

Lamentations 3:24-26 KJV - The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him. The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.

These verses, in the middle of the book, are a statement of faith. The faith of Jeremiah standing strong in the midst of surrounding darkness that shines a beacon to all those suffering under the consequences of their own sin.

Yes, the book reminds us of the heavy price we pay when we choose to sin, but it also gives hope to those who choose to repent.

As we know, later on God restored his people to their land and blessed them once again.

The beauty of this book of Lamentations is that even the most sinful person can find hope in God who is willing to pour out his abundant mercy and grace on any who come to him in repentance.

And for the Christian, as we live our daily lives and we falter and fail, God is willing and able to forgive.

Now, back to the most familiar verses in the whole book of Lamentations and the verses the little chorus is based upon.

Lamentations 3:22-23 KJV - It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.

In some Bible versions, the word stedfast is used to paint a picture of God’s firm, immoveable, unchanging love.

We know that God’s love abides even in times of trouble and in times of judgment. God never once stopped loving Israel, despite their sin. It was God’s great love that spared the people from being utterly wiped out by Babylon.

When you grasp the fact that God’s love is never ending and unchangeable, you will understand more about God’s mercy. Mercy is a byproduct of God’s love. Since God’s love will never end, neither will his mercy.

God’s mercy, put simply, is God’s goodness, compassion, lovingkindness and favour. Though we deserve punishment, God reaches down and extends his arm of blessing.

And so, it is because of God’s great love and mercy that we are not consumed, destroyed, finished, given up on.

It’s nothing we have done, it is all that he has done. On our behalf.

We are told that his mercy and compassions ‘fail not’. The Hebrew word for this is ‘kala’. It literally means finished. Completed. Worn out. Failed. Perished. Used up. Exhausted.

Think about it like this.

God’s mercy towards you:

Will never finish

Will never be gone

Will never fail

Will never perish

Will never be exhausted

Will never run out

Will never fail

Will never grow weary.

And just when you thought this promise was too good to be true, keep reading, there’s more!

“They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.”

So, if you thought that God’s mercies would tire, Jeremiah reminds us that they are new every morning. In other words, every morning is a new beginning.

God gives mercy for each day, and it is refilled and refreshed every morning.

It’s not just about availability, it’s also about access. Regardless of how often we have to rely on his mercy, which in reality is every day, you can always come back for more.

It’s not a license to sin but it is a promise to those who walk in obedience to him.

The last line of verse 23 ties it all together. “Great is thy faithfulness”.

The reason we can depend on God’s mercy and compassion, is because of his faithfulness. It is God’s faithfulness to his Word and the promises we find there, that ensures us new mercies each morning.

We are told in Psalm 138 that God honours his Word above his name.

Psalm 138:2 KJV - I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.

(interestingly, the word for lovingkindness is the same Hebrew word used for mercy)

God is true to his Word. He never breaks a promise.

There is no expiration date on God’s mercy. With the dawn of every day comes another store of compassion made available to us. His stores are infinite.

No matter which side of the bed we get up on, we will find God’s mercies awaiting us.

Don’t neglect the conditions on your way to the blessings though.

Lamentations 3:25 KJV - The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him.

We are granted new mercies, but we are reminded that God requires us to wait on him (patiently) and also to seek (follow) him.

We need to repent quickly. We need to keep short accounts. Recognize the value of his mercy and don’t let it be an excuse for sin. Instead, let it be the reason you come running to him in repentance.

We also need to renew frequently. Regardless of the sins of yesterday, we need to come to God in repentance, renew our commitment to him and begin each day afresh. When we fall on our face and fail him, we can reach out our arms to him, letting him set our feet on solid ground once again and bathe in his forgiveness and love.

And we need to remember to rejoice continually. Because of God’s stedfast love, we don’t have to wonder if God has changed his mind. We can live with the assurance that his mercies are never-ending and that they will always be accessible. This should give us cause to rejoice each and every day.

The Lord Jesus, the God of creation, is the same yesterday, today and forever. He will never change. We can rest on his promises and hold fast to his Word.

 

Hebrews 13:8 KJV - Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.