Tag: Faith

Little Children

Ephesians 6:1-4

1Children, obey your parents in the LORD, for this is right. 2″Honor your father and mother”-which is the first commandment with a promise- 3″so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.” 4Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the LORD.

Matthew 19:14

14Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”See the source image

Many moons ago ( I say many moons as I am 60) having being brought up in The Salvation Army I decided to get saved on what is known in the Army as commitment Sunday at the very young age of 7yrs and I have committed my life to Christ ever since.

I have had my up and down’s in my Christian life since then but who doesn’t? The main thing is I have kept my faith and still attend The Salvation Army as my church.  In fact with the various things that have happened in my life health wise or other, if anything it has been my faith that has kept me going.

Decisions

Image result for Christian decisions

Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.

Most of us will have heard or used the saying ‘Decisions, decisions, decisions’ at some point in our life.

Because we have to make decisions every day of our lives decisions are usually pretty easy to make most of the time, but occasionally a tough one comes along where we find ourselves asking what do I do here? What road do I take.

It is then as Christians we should pray to the Lord for guidance and trust in the Lord to guide us in the right direction.

I’ll let the video speak for itself.

All Saints Day

Revelation 14 New International Version

The Three Angels

6 Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth—to every nation, tribe, language and people. 7 He said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.”

8 A second angel followed and said, “‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great,’[a] which made all the nations drink the maddening wine of her adulteries.”

9 A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives its mark on their forehead or on their hand, 10 they, too, will drink the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. They will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torment will rise for ever and ever. There will be no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and its image, or for anyone who receives the mark of its name.” 12 This calls for patient endurance on the part of the people of God who keep his commands and remain faithful to Jesus.

13 Then I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.”

“Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.”

Faith heals the Sick

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James 5 New International Version 

The Prayer of Faith

13 Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.

17 Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years.18 Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.

19 My brothers and sisters, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring that person back, 20 remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of their way will save them from death and cover over a multitude of sins.

Decisions

See the source image

Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.

Most of us will have heard or used the saying ‘Decisions, decisions, decisions’ at some point in our life.

Because we have to make decisions every day of our lives decisions are usually pretty easy to make most of the time, but occasionally a tough one comes along where we find ourselves asking what do I do here? What road do I take.

It is then as Christians we should pray to the Lord for guidance and trust in the Lord to guide us in the right direction.

I’ll let the video speak for itself.

Trust in God

John 12; 37-50

Belief and Unbelief Among the Jews

37 Even after Jesus had performed so many signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him. 38 This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet: “Lord, who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” 39 For this reason they could not believe, because, as Isaiah says elsewhere: 40 “He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, so they can neither see with their eyes, nor understand with their hearts, nor turn—and I would heal them.” 41 Isaiah said this because he saw Jesus’ glory and spoke about him. 42 Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they would not openly acknowledge their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue; 43 for they loved human praise more than praise from God. 44 Then Jesus cried out, “Whoever believes in me does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me. 45 The one who looks at me is seeing the one who sent me. 46 I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness. 47 “If anyone hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge that person. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. 48 There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; the very words I have spoken will condemn them at the last day. 49 For I did not speak on my own, but the Father who sent me commanded me to say all that I have spoken. 50 I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.”

1.
As the varied way of life we journey,
Come the plains and then the mountainside,
Come the days of joy when birds are singing,
And the world is fair and sweet and wide;
Then a deeper joy comes, overfilling,
From the everlasting throne of love,
And all other joy is but an echo
From the ever-blessed heights above.

2.
There are shadows on the earthly pathway
Where, at times uncertainly, we tread;
In perplexity we halt and linger
Till our faith again is upward led.
For the heights of truth are ever calling,
And celestial radiance from afar
On our pilgrim way is gently falling
For our comfort where the shadows are.

3.
In the days of peace and golden sunshine,
In the days of joy. or days of woe,
There is confidence in him who holds us;
There is light to guide us here below.
And beyond await the heights of rapture
Where all earthly joys, transcended, fade
In the glory of the Saviour’s presence,
In the home eternal he has made.

Holding hands with the Lord

Image result for Isaiah 42: V6

Isaiah 42: V1-9 New International Version 

The Servant of the Lord

42 “Here is my servant, whom I uphold,
    my chosen one in whom I delight;
I will put my Spirit on him,
    and he will bring justice to the nations.
2 He will not shout or cry out,
    or raise his voice in the streets.
3 A bruised reed he will not break,
    and a soldering wick he will not snuff out.
In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;
4     he will not falter or be discouraged
till he establishes justice on earth.
    In his teaching the islands will put their hope.”

5 This is what God the Lord says—
the Creator of the heavens, who stretches them out,
    who spreads out the earth with all that springs from it,
    who gives breath to its people,
    and life to those who walk on it:
6 “I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness;
    I will take hold of your hand.
I will keep you and will make you
    to be a covenant for the people
    and a light for the Gentiles,
7 to open eyes that are blind,
    to free captives from prison
    and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.

8 “I am the Lord; that is my name!
I will not yield my glory to another
or my praise to idols.
9 See, the former things have taken place,
and new things I declare;
before they spring into being
I announce them to you.”

 

  1. Hold Thou my hand; so weak I am, and helpless,
    I dare not take one step without Thy aid;
    Hold Thou my hand; for then, O loving Savior,
    No dread of ill shall make my soul afraid.
  2. Hold Thou my hand, and closer, closer draw me
    To Thy dear self-my hope, my joy, my all;
    Hold Thou my hand, lest haply I should wander,
    And, missing Thee, my trembling feet should fall.
  3. Hold Thou my hand; the way is dark before me
    Without the sunlight of Thy face divine;
    But when by faith I catch its radiant glory,
    What heights of joy, what rapturous songs are mine!
  4. Hold Thou my hand, that when I reach the margin
    Of that lone river Thou didst cross for me,
    A heav’nly light may flash along its waters,
    And every wave like crystal bright shall be.

The Promised Land

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Psalm 121 New International Version 

A song of ascents.

1 I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
    where does my help come from?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
    the Maker of heaven and earth.

3 He will not let your foot slip—
    he who watches over you will not slumber;
4 indeed, he who watches over Israel
    will neither slumber nor sleep.

5 The Lord watches over you—
    the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
6 the sun will not harm you by day,
    nor the moon by night.

7 The Lord will keep you from all harm—
he will watch over your life;
8 the Lord will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.

1.
To the hills I lift my eyes,
The distant hills before me;
Hills that rise to reach the skies,
And spread their glory o’er me.
Planted by omnipotent hand,
By divine appointment they stand,
To the hills I lift my eyes,
The beckoning hills before me.

2.
Eyes may scan the dizzy height,
And human feet stand on it;
Only faith, in mystic flight,
Can see the realms beyond it.
Steeper than the mountains of time,
Higher than the loftiest climb,
O’er the hills I lift my eyes;
From thence my help is coming.

3.
To the hills I’ll turn again,
Away from earthly slumber,
There to gain the topmost plain;
May naught my way encumber.
On the highest summit I’ll stand,
There to view the long-promised land;
Though my eyes look to the skies,
I lift my heart to Heaven.

 

God is with us!

Romans 8 New International Version

More Than Conquerors

31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:

“For your sake we face death all day long;
    we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”[j]

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[k] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

1 Through the love of God our Saviour,
all will be well.
Free and changeless is his favour,
all, all is well.
Precious is the blood that healed us,
perfect is the grace that sealed us,
strong the hand stretched forth to shield us,
all must be well.

2 Though we pass through tribulation,
all will be well.
Ours is such a full salvation,
all, all is well.
Happy, still in God confiding,
fruitful, if in Christ abiding,
holy, through the Spirit’s guiding,
all must be well.

3 We expect a bright tomorrow,
all will be well.
Faith can sing through days of sorrow,
‘All, all is well.’
On our Father’s love relying,
Jesus every need supplying,
in our living, in our dying,
all must be well.

Finding Hope

Romans 5:1-11 New International Version 

Peace and Hope

5 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we[a] have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we[b]boast in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we[c] also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.Image result for Christian Finding Hope

9 Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! 10 For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! 11 Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

We learn in the passage above that we have been justified through faith and we’ll have peace with God through Jesus. We are also told that hope does not put us to shame because God’s love has been poured out through the holy spirit. we are further reminded of God’s love for us in verse eight ‘Christ died for us’