God’s Pet

March 7, 2013

chaney01 Dog one: Owner comes home, jumps for joy, wags tail, follows owner around house sniffing him and licking him and being excited.

Owner pats him and takes dog to backyard. Owner throws ball, dog chases it, picks it up brings it back and repeats 10 times. Owner praises dog for fetching ball, pats dog and gives him a hug.

Owner notices dog has pulled washing of line and torn up shirt during the day. Owner scolds dog and tells him he is a naughty dog. Owner stops playing with dog, cleans up mess and goes inside.

One hour later owner returns to yard, feeds dog, refills water bowl, sits with dog, pats him and they watch the sunset together.

animal_communicator_tips_calm_scared_pet

   Dog Two: Owner comes home, dog nowhere to be found. Owner searches and finds dog hiding. Owner speaks encouragingly to dog and tries to entice him out to play. Dog finally comes out reluctantly and stands with tail between legs while owner tries to pat and give affection. 

Owner coaxes dog into backyard and throws ball. Dog ambles towards ball and brings back with head hung low.

Owner notices dog has pulled washing of line and torn up shirt during the day. Owner scolds dog and tells him he is a naughty dog. Owner stops playing with dog, cleans up mess and goes inside.

One hour later owner returns to yard, feeds dog, refills water bowl, sits with dog, pats him and they watch the sunset together.

Dog sits next to owner during sunset worrying that owner is still angry. Dog’s eyes are droopy and teary, head is down, each time the owner pats him he cringes and worries.

Owner walks back inside and dog goes over to food bowl. Dog looks at food and panics. What if the owner doesn’t feed him tomorrow? What if this food has to last a week? Should he eat it all or just have a nibble? What if the owner does feed him tomorrow and he hasn’t finished today’s portion? Will it rot?

Dog slumps down next to food bowl thinking life is just too hard!!

Conclusion: We are the sons and daughters of God but it may help you to think of yourself as God’s pet just for a moment. He loves you! HE just wants you to be happy, have fun, don’t worry…He will take care of you!

Yes, if you do something wrong He will correct you. You may even have to endure consequences. Maybe you will be ties up from now on instead of left to tear clothes off the line. But he still wants to sit with you and pat you and enjoy being with you.

Find the joy in leaning on Him and not your own understanding. Live by grace and then you can worship him freely, which is what we were created for!!

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Are we bad shepherds?

December 18, 2012

bad-shepherds

Ezekiel 34:1-6

The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Woe to you shepherds of Israel who only take care of yourselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock? 3 You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but you do not take care of the flock. 4 You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled them harshly and brutally. 5 So they were scattered because there was no shepherd, and when they were scattered they became food for all the wild animals. 6 My sheep wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. They were scattered over the whole earth, and no one searched or looked for them.

So who are the shepherds of Israel?’ Well Israel would be those who are saved. And who are the shepherds? You could argue that the shepherds are the priests and ministers of the modern day church.

But when I read this verse what I get is that God is speaking to ME.

Matthew 25:31-46

The Sheep and the Goats

31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

45 “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

In Ezekiel and Matthew we are reminder again that it is not enough to go to church and read the bible, we have to have God’s heart for others. ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’ has to be LIVED. You have to DO things to care for others if you love them. ‘Faith without action is dead’.

If I told you I had a wife who I loved  and that we had been married for 20 years but then said I had never asked her to marry me or even talked to her before, you would think I was crazy. If we profess to love God and love our neighbor and yet we don’t do anything to manifest that love, we are crazy.

We must get over ourselves and sow into others. The bible tells us many times that we will be held responsible for people that we DON’T help. Just like my post on Ezekiel 33 below, their blood may be on our hands.

Lets get out there and save the world, oe act of random kindness at a time. GBU

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The End is Nigh

December 15, 2012

end-of-the-world-is-nigh--007

I remember a guy who walked around the local Saturday market in my home town with a sign similar to the one in the picture above. We all laughed at him and thought he was crazy. I was unsaved then. Or is that my excuse?

I am saved now. But do I do enough to let people know the truth? I do a lot of ‘soft evangelism. I will share with anyone who is open. But is that enough?

It dawned on me this morning as I read Ezekiel 33 that it is not enough to be saved. I spend FAR TOO MUCH time concerned with my own salvation and personal spiritual growth. In fact, I get caught up on ‘Am I a good boy? Should I do this? Should I do that?’

I spend so much time focused on myself that I am not being as effective as I could be. Even when I do things for God or for others, I calculate it as ‘how am I doing’.

As Christians, do we go with the status quo? Do we try not to rock the boat? Are we radically different or even prepared to be if God challenges us? 

We may find that when we reach heaven God says to us that we scrapped through by the skin of our teeth but He would have been much happier if we had taken some risks for Him. Even worse, He may say “I never knew you”

Ezekiel 33

Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, speak to the children of your people, and say to them: ‘When I bring the sword upon a land, and the people of the land take a man from their territory and make him their watchman, 3 when he sees the sword coming upon the land, if he blows the trumpet and warns the people, 4 then whoever hears the sound of the trumpet and does not take warning, if the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be on his own head. 5 He heard the sound of the trumpet, but did not take warning; his blood shall be upon himself. But he who takes warning will save his life. 6 But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at the watchman’s hand.’

If we had the mindset that securing our own salvation was not enough, our salvation might be a lot more secure. As people who know the truth we are responsible for helping those that don’t. If we don’t try hard enough their blood could be on our hands.

Be a watchman for you generation. Lord knows they need it. GBU

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Employee Evaluation Form

October 18, 2012

Employee Evaluation Form

Image

1) Do you know the boss personally

2) Do you have a good relationship with the boss

3) Have you read the staff manual

4) Have you up-skilled yourself lately

5) How dedicated to the company are you

6) Have you done anything to reflect badly on the name of our company

7) Have you sold any product this month

8) How many people have you told about our product this month

 

Do you deserve to keep your job ??

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The Impotent Trojan Horse

October 2, 2012

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We cry out to God ‘Why?”. We determine to stoically keep our faith during times of adversity. We grit our teeth and bear it. We whine. We complain. We plod through the valley trusting that the light isn’t far away.

We miss the point.

God, why am I in this situation? God why is this person in front of me moving so slowly when I am in such a rush? God why have I run into this negative person when I was feeling so good? God why am I being falsely accused?

Because YOU are there to DO SOMETHING!

If you just complain or grit your teeth to get through it you have missed your purpose. You will be like a Trojan horse that was placed EXACTLY WHERE IT NEEDED TO BE. The battle was set, the strategy was in place, the volunteer soldier was in position and then, right when the trap door should have opened and God’s warrior should have gone into the fray to win a victory, NOTHING HAPPENED.

God looked into the Trojan horse wondering why His warrior didn’t go forth and fight and he found a distracted and confused person complaining about how uncomfortable the ride in the Trojan horse had been or how there weren’t enough windows or not enough air to ventilate the space.

He shook his head and scoffed at the fact that just that morning His ‘warrior’ had been crying out for an opportunity to “Do something, Do anything for his Lord and King.”

When you find yourself in an uncomfortable situation. When you are somewhere you don’t want to be. When you are around people who are frustrating you. When you are falsely accused. When you are imprisoned unjustly. That is where He needs you. To pray light into the darkness. To speak blessing into people. Not to get distracted by your flesh.

 

In those hard times, seek HIS PERSPECTIVE!! GBU

 

Psalms 91:1,2

Proverbs 3:5,6

Romans 8:38,39

James 1:2-4

1 Peter 1:6-9

Philippians 4:6,7

Philippians 1:12-14

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Getting what you need, not what you want

August 29, 2012

ImageFor God there is no tomorrow, no yesterday and no last week. God lives in the NOW. He sees everything that has ever happened and everything that will happen all at once. For Him it is just a matter of bringing His perfect plan into fruition.

In the bible it says 365 times ‘Do not worry’. His word tells us ‘that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.’ Romans 8:28

So what does this mean?

If you have just had your car stolen: Don’t worry, in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.’

If you have just lost your job: in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.’

If you are sick: in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.’

If life is not going the way you want it to: in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.’

Remember that the purpose of this life is to train us spiritually, NOT to be successful and comfortable in the world. ‘Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you.’ 1John 2:15

If we focus on what is truly important in life, namely learning to “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ and ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ Matthew 22:37-38 instead of trying to get more money, a bigger house, more recognition and more success in the world, we might feel like more than conquerors instead of flailing Christians.

2 Corinthians 5:7 ‘We live by faith, not by sight’. The faith that God’s plan is being played out and we are a vital part of it. The faith that the circumstances of our lives are being used to mold and shape us for a purpose, His purpose, not our desires!

Romans 9: 20 But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, “Why have you made me like this?” 21  Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use? 22 What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, 23 in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory.

Learn to thank Him and praise Him even when you can’t see the blessing!! God Bless You

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Here is an analogy for life: Life is God teaching us to drive a car

March 1, 2012

He gives us the key…. Salvation

He tells us to put in the key, put in the clutch and turn it on.

We do, and then the radio comes on, we turn it up, get into the song and start humming away.

After a while we realise we’re not going anywhere, we turn down the radio and turn to God “Hey, God!! Why isn’t it working?

To which He replies, “I hadn’t finished teaching you. Now you need to change the gears and…

“Nananahnahna!! We are off again, trying to do it ourselves

“Hey God!! Still not moving, what’s the problem? Thought you were all powerful and that.”

Yes, my son, I still wasn’t done. Next you let out the clutch slowly and press down the accelerator.

“Wooohooo!! I’m moving!! We cruise around for a while, loving the sensation, praising God for how wonderful He is for helping us.

Then we realise we don’t know where we are or where we are going.

We ask him and He gives us some directions and tells us to go on a little way. We begin to get the hang of driving and are following his directions.

Then we see a shop giving away free blackberries!! We swing the wheel, pull of the road, park the car and run into the store. We are laughing at how lucky we were to be driving down this road right at the moment when the giveaway is on. We put two and two together and figure that it must have been God’s plan!! He brought us down this road, He wanted us to get a free blackberry!! What a great God!!

Meanwhile, God is shaking His head and wondering why we have stopped the car.

Finally we get back in the car and back on our path. God tells us to go left, right, faster, slower etc. He sees that we are starting to get the hang of following his directions. We get the sense that God is happy with us and turn to him and smile.

He responds by saying “You are getting it”. We look at Him and nod. He smiles and says:

“NOW, CLOSE YOUR EYES”

We freak out a bit but then do it. We listen to His voice and follow His directions and gradually start to realise we can do it!! We are cruising along, eyes closed, responding to His directions.

Then we open one eye and peak.

“WOOOOOOH!! What are we doing here!!!” We swing the wheel, turn the car around and start flooring it in the other direction.

“It’s lucky I peaked!! We were in big trouble!! That road was so narrow and there were drop offs on either side, one wrong move and we would have been dead. Lucky I turned around”

That narrow path that we can only navigate by listening to every word that comes from the mouth of God and walking by faith and not by sight…..LIFE.

GBU

 

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Showing Love vs Saying I love you

December 7, 2011

Imagine that you are a single mother. You have one daughter who you love more than life itself. You meet a guy who tells you he loves you. In fact, he dedicates part of his week to singing to you and telling you how wonderful and beautiful and excellent you are. He is constantly sharing his inner most thoughts and feelings with you and never goes to sleep without telling you how much he loves you.

The way he treats your daughter is very different. He gets very impatient with her. He swears at her. If you are not home he eats all the food and lets her starve.

Would you be able to love this man?

We sing outrageously overstated songs to God in church every week. We tell Him how much we love and adore Him and how we want to be with Him as much as possible. And yet I can’t find ANYWHERE in the bible that it tells us He wants us to do that. What I can find is that if we want to express our love for Him we should love others. How does He feel when we profess such love for him and yet neglect His children, just like the daughter in my analogy?

Matthew 25

34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

45 “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

Forgive us Father and help us to be better lights for your Kingdom. Help us to love others and do good for them so they will come to know You. Amen

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Bottled Water Ministry

November 11, 2011

I am plodding along in my new church. I have printed some cards to help ‘reach out’ to people. I often go for a run along the beach in the morning and have started handing out cards to people.

When I get to the beach at 6:30am, there are often people still milling around after being out night clubbing all night. There are western tourists and prostitutes having a last beer from the circle K before getting in a taxi. There is the odd person, who indulged too much passed out on the beach, and there are often groups of people going for a semi-clad, intoxicated swim.

My heart is for them!! I want to reach out to them! I want to tell them about God!

Bringing middle aged couples into the church is great but my heart is for a ministry to the critically ill, those who are so far from God that they actively oppose Him. Those that are partying and using drugs and sleeping with prostitutes and prostituting themselves.

I was there once. I spent the first two thirds of my life COMPLETELY lost. Surely He can use that training. My questions now are ‘how?’, ‘when?’, ‘where?’, ’do I really have the guts?’.

For months now I have been desiring to get up in the middle of the night, take a box of bottled water to the car park where I start my run and just give out free water to the revellers, hoping to do something for God from there. Something has held me back….but I don’t think it will for much longer. Pray for me please.

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He’s In Control

October 29, 2011

Mathew 17 : 24-26

24After Jesus and his disciples arrived in Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma tax came to Peter and asked, “Doesn’t your teacher pay the temple tax?”

25″Yes, he does,” he replied.

When Peter came into the house, Jesus was the first to speak. “What do you think, Simon?” he asked. “From whom do the kings of the earth collect duty and taxes—from their own sons or from others?”

26″From others,” Peter answered.

“Then the sons are exempt,” Jesus said to him. 27″But so that we may not offend them, go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours.”

For morning devotion at the school I work at there re 2 teachers assigned to each class. My partner and I take turns giving sermons and leading the 15 minutes we have with our class each morning. This morning she shared about how last week she was having a problem and without knowing it my sharing was very specific advice for her.

Even now I don’t remember the sharing I gave. Quite often I go to class with little or no idea what I am going to talk about and just talk about something I have heard or learnt in the past. But God is God and He is in control !!

Why didn’t Jesus just take a coin out of His pocket and hand it to Peter to pay the tax ? Because He wanted to make the point that He is in control of everything, nature, money, every circumstance, everything !

One of my favourite experiences as a Christian is when you have the revelation or ‘re-revelation (remember) that God is working in every aspect of your life. He knit us together in our mother’s womb, He clothes the lilies in the field (Matthew 6:27-29), He commanded the waves and wind to stop, He cures disease and HE LOVES YOU AND ME !! How wonderful that is, if He is with us, who is against us ?

Lean on Him today, trust in Him, have faith in Him. They are the key words in Christianity because that is what Christianity is all about. The fact that God is God and He has a beautiful plan. Love Him, trust Him and know that all things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28

GBU

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