Education, career, family, retire….then what?

 

Life is so brief isn’t it? If you’re an adult reading this, you’ll remember your childhood well. Almost like yesterday.

Don’t you ever wonder if there’s more? I mean, we’re born into this world, and many of us are blessed enough to receive an education. We grow up and become adults and may choose some sort of career. Some of us will marry, some of us will remain single, some will have children and some won’t. But whether or not we do any of that, life is moving on all the time and those things don’t define who we are. So now we may have reached retirement age. Some of us may be facing health challenges, whilst others may find it hard to retire when we’ve immersed ourselves in our careers all our lives. Or you may have  looked forward to retirement only to  realise that after just a few years  it’s not all it’s cracked up to be. 

Did you know that we are designed to live life with purpose? Did you know that this sense of lack and deep desire on the inside of us was placed there by God and can only be satisfied in him? The day you were born into this world- in fact before you were born into this world God had a purpose for you. You have a role to fulfil in this world, specifically designed for you by God. 

This is what God says about you:

“Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.

”‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭1‬:‭5‬ ‭KJV‬‬

https://bible.com/bible/1/jer.1.5.KJV

Whatever stage of life you find yourself at, I encourage you – it is never too late to find purpose in life. I can honestly say that I was in my 40s before I really began to see God’s purpose for me. Until then I was drifting along on a boat of religiosity. But I’ve never been as fulfilled in life as I am now. I don’t have it all figured out. There are lots of things I don’t get, even now. But one thing I do recognise, is that I have a destiny and even one day when I reach retirement I have lots of plans-God given plans to reach other people because of the gifts God has placed on the inside of me. 

So if you feel you’re missing that purpose in life, start with God’s plan for your life. Read that verse above again and ask God to reveal his purpose to you. You are going to be such a blessing!

Please share!

Place it in His Hands

 

“The feeding of the 5000”. It’s quoted so much it almost sounds like a cliche! But there are some astounding truths in this wonderful miracle, found in John 6:8-13, that I had overlooked.

I was feeling grouchy. Really grouchy. Awoken by the shopping delivery very early on a Saturday, when I thought I could catch up with a bit of shut-eye, having been up extra late working/studying the night before. (Don’t judge me, the earlier delivery times are cheaper!😆). You know what it’s like, your time is so tight and just when you think you have your organisation skills perfected, another issue pops up and rocks the apple cart. Yes, there was yet another very important event happening this weekend that I had not factored in to my already-limited schedule. Grrrr!

Then I saw the title to a devotional from someone who I love to listen to, Joseph Prince, Called “place it in His hands”. I am going to share with you what was revealed to me as I began to read this account of 5000 people being fed miraculously from Jesus’  hands, with only five loaves of bread and two fish.

The first thing I noticed about this story, was that the limited resources available needed to be placed in the hands of the Supplier. That’s called “Prayer”. We take our issues, however small or large they are and we ask for God’s help in prayer. We ‘place it in his hands.’ Note that Jesus then placed this supply in the hands of his disciples. Then they distributed it to everyone else-‘the world’. This is intended as a model for us to follow, of God supplying pastors, elders, leaders etc. with His life – giving word, and then they distribute it to us. That’s not by any means the only way we are to receive it. We are supposed to spend time alone with God too. But remember, this story is a pattern to be followed. But there’s more.

Did you know that miracles are limiting? As exciting as they are, they are momentary- not lasting. The baskets show us this. They are containers - the supplies within them are therefore contained. The supply that Jesus made possible was supposed to be on a continuum. It was never meant to be the final point of arrival. When our leaders over us in the Lord spend time in God’s presence being fed by Him, they are able to “feed my sheep” from a place of love, which is what Jesus was communicating to Peter when he asked Peter three times, “Peter, do you love me?” In John 21:15-16. Jesus told Peter to “feed my sheep“. In other words get this life-giving “bread“ to everyone else. But there’s more.

As our pastors, elders etc. Feed us, we feed the world. That’s the whole point! We were never meant to be inward looking – there’s a whole world out there in need of help, guidance, supplies and above all, God’s love. The limitations of the metaphorical baskets have been utterly removed. Remember, Jesus left. He couldn't  stay with the disciples, He had to go back to heaven. This actually meant that a huge limitation to people receiving what they needed was also removed. Why? Because the Holy Spirit came, representing an unlimited supply. Jesus was one person limited to one space at one time. He couldn’t get to everybody. Couldn’t heal, teach, encourage, deliver and empower everyone all the time. But when the Holy Spirit arrived at Pentecost, he represented unlimited supplies. Because of Him, we now have unlimited ways of getting to the supplies He wants to give to us, unlimited ways of receiving those supplies, unlimited ways of  getting the good news out there, with plenty left over for us - The story tells us that there were 12 baskets full of leftovers. That sounds like abundance to me!

But don’t forget what our very first step was – placing it in his hands-telling him all about it in prayer, always being conscious of his love for us and his absolute will to supply whatever the need is. God has met every need through His son, Jesus. He is the ultimate “bread”.

For steps two and three, look at verse 11 of our scripture for today. It says that Jesus gave thanks before He distributed the bread. As we pray,  and way beyond our prayers let’s maintain an attitude of thanksgiving. As seen in the story today, Thanksgiving increases supply! Step three is about positioning. The people were sitting down, it says in verse 11. That looks like they were waiting to me. Nothing about them seemed frantic, fretful or concerned. They simply waited expectantly. That was their position. To them, they had already received what they needed. Lamentations 3:26 tells us that this kind of expectant waiting on God is a good attitude to have. And they were rewarded- John 6:11 tells us that they had as much as they wanted! So God doesn’t just scrape the bottom of the barrel to give us what we need because He’s on a budget. He wants to give far more than that. Keep that in mind with the current crisis facing the economy - but I’ll save that for another blog! In fact he wants to give much more than you can ask Him for. (Eph 3:20).

Honestly? This makes my griping at the beginning of this blog seem so trivial now. I’m going right now to place these issues in my Father’s hands. Then I’ll thank Him. And then…well, I’ll ‘sit down’ and expect. He’s my daddy, and He won’t let me down. And I encourage you to adopt this approach today.

Please share!

What have you told yourself today?

Do you know, that you have convos with yourself all the time? Each time you say “what shall I wear/ eat”? Or “I need to do this/that….”, you are talking to yourself. Sometimes aloud, sometimes internally. Now, I want you to do something very practical:

Take an inventory of your habits. What do you say to yourself every day? Maybe even several times a day? 

Now look at some of the things that have manifested in your life. I don’t mean things you can’t control, like rising energy costs, wars etc.  I mean things which you may have more control over than you realise. Things more nuanced, like your moods, or your tendency to fly off the handle, overspending, overeating,  habits like hoarding, obsessing, worrying - plus many more. I can guarantee that you weren’t born doing those things. At some point, you had a convo with yourself. It wasn’t a healthy one. But it became regular, and over the years has formed these habits. 

Would you like to see a change? 

I’m going to tell you to do something ridiculous: Keep doing the same thing! “WHAT?” Yes, keep on regularly speaking to yourself. But this time, where you say “I can’t“, you’re going to change it to:

 “I’m going to give this a try. And even if it doesn’t work this time I’m going to try again and again until it does.“ It’s taken many years for these negative habits to form, and yet exchanging them for positive ones for a few weeks on a regular basis means that your future can change. You are being deliberate, in your actions because you want change.  I can’t tell you that you will never fall into old habits again. But they will drop off if you don’t waste precious time entertaining them. They will dominate your thought patterns less because now you have a weapon in your arsenal which you are actively deploying against those unhealthy habits. Tell God:

“I don’t know the answer right now, but I’m telling you about it Lord, and I know I’m receiving your peace as I do that. Lord, every time my heart races, and questions come, and the threats surround me, I’m creating a habit right now of running to you. I’ve worried myself sick, I’ve turned things over and over in my head and discovered that it doesn’t work. Literally every time I feel panic, I’m running to you. Beginning TODAY.”

Whoever you are, I can tell you first hand, that you will find freedom and peace in exchanging your negative habits with biblical ones.  Here is an invitation, personally for you:

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭11‬:‭28‬-‭30‬ ‭KJV‬‬

https://bible.com/bible/1/mat.11.29-30.KJV

Why don’t you accept this invitation  today?

What Do You Have On the Inside of You?

Did you know, that what’s ‘conceived in you is of the Holy Spirit? 

That dream you’ve always had - it’s from Him. Do not abort it. It’s a divine conception. Matt 1:20.“… that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit”. Understandably, Joseph was concerned to learn that his betrothed, Mary, was already pregnant. What if they had decided to abort that Holy Package! But when God revealed this to me personally, a holy reverence fell. 

You see, like Mary we have a holy commission in our lives. Our very lives - God wants them to be shaped by GSU’s. (‘God set-ups’). That idea that’s been with you for literally decades, which when you think it’s long gone forever, somehow keeps popping up again from deep down on the inside of you? That’s a ‘Holy Seed’. Don’t be afraid of it. The angel told Joseph that it’s by the Holy Spirit” that Mary conceived the King of Kings, Lord of Lords, and Saviour of you, me, and the whole world. And God would say the same to us today. 

What’s on the inside of you waiting to be birthed? Give room to it. Begin to think on it. Here a little …there a little…He will lead you to it.

Please share!

Don’t Be Lawful (😱)! Be Helpful!

Just because something is ‘right’, or  ‘correct’, that doesn’t always make it ‘helpful’. 

For example, I like to help the homeless in various ways, but when there’s a street that (sadly) has homeless people along it’s length, I know I simply can’t help all of them. I used to go away feeling guilty about this. I can just hear the voice of the enemy whispering “well what about this one?” And “You missed that one”. But check out what Paul has to say in 1 Cor 6:12:

“All things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.”

This captures the idea of the law being attached to punishment. Not everything enshrined in law is good for us. Look at the contrast between “lawful” and “helpful”. The focus for us should always be on the “helpful”. If our reasoning for doing things is because it’s helpful, we’ll most likely have a more natural desire to do them, rather than doing them under duress, leading to compunction. That is so much more powerful than doing things out of duty! You’ll do them with the right motives, not because of the consequences, or punishments that will follow if they’re not done. 

These consequences, or punishments, have the propensity to bring us under their power- you know, it’s that feeling of overpowering guilt. That’s why 1 Corinthians 6:12  says “I will not be brought under the power of them”. Think eating habits/diets. Many diets fail because of this legalistic mentality: 

“I’ve put on a stone! ” = feel bad = comfort eating = more weight gain = punishment = work harder = eventually give up and try a new eating plan. 🥵

And so the cycle continues. All the while feeling  bad about yourself. Now let’s contrast that with being “helpful” to yourself:

“I’m going to eat this because I enjoy it and it just happens to be good for me too”.

Or even:

“I’m going to eat this just because I enjoy it. Although it’s not particularly healthy, it’s not my every day way of eating”

= No punishment = 

Feel good = 

Liberated.

You are no longer “brought under the power” of legalism. And importantly, you’ll have a far more holistic approach to health, not just physically, but emotionally and mentally too. 

Conclusion? Be helpful to yourself, not legalistic, and be FREE!

Don’t Quite Fit In?

Acceptance. It can seem so hard to fit in sometimes. When it feels as though you’re always the odd one out. You know, you don’t look the same, act the same, and especially, believe the same as everyone else.

It makes me laugh, how we’re ‘encouraged’ to think liberally, embrace ‘difference’, and yet when someone expresses a belief that’s different to popular thinking, this is apparently not allowed.

My sister, my brother, I urge you to not be afraid because of your perceived flaws, or of criticisms and rejections. Keep on getting back up as many times as it takes. Not in your own strength - you’ll definitely fail. Lean on God’s unfailing love for you and know who you are in Him.

Remember: Acceptance doesn’t mean perfection, and flaws don’t mean rejection.

If it’s acceptance you’re seeking and you keep on being rejected, it may well be because you’re actually on the right path, the less popular one that leads to Christ. If this is the case, you’ll find that He will surround you with His presence, and perfect acceptance.

In Christ, you are: blessed, chosen, blameless, predestined, adopted, redeemed, forgiven and definitely… Accepted! Ephesians 1:3-7.

I look forward, as always, to hearing your comments on: Hisheartoyours.blogspot.com

His Providence - Not Your Bank Account’s.

I just wanna say this to y’all fr Ps 23. If the Lord is your Shepherd, you shall not want. In other words, you will not lack anything if He’s leading you. 

He leads us beside green pastures. When the land is green, it’s healthy and lush. It’s fruitful, and produces abundantly. This is pastoral language which would be familiar to those living in the Bible days. What does this look like for us now? Well, it’s just as relevant. It looks like -  no matter about price hikes, energy/ food bills that have plagued the UK (and the world it seems), this world was never our source. It was, is and always will be the God of Psalm 23. The God of abundance. 

So whilst the world is busy with worry and fear, let’s spread our finances before God, to demonstrate our faith in Him, not in news reports, and declare “the Lord is my Shepherd, so  I shall not want.”

Amen.

A Troubled Son/ Daughter

When our children struggle through pressing issues, such as depression, gender uncertainty, homosexuality, addictions, or anything else, make sure you are giving the correct report about them. Don't simply condemn them in your frustration, even though you yourself are feeling overwhelmed and battle-weary. Even if it's through gritted teeth, make sure you are giving the correct report about your child. In other words, say what God's Word says, not what you feel. 

In John 4:46-53, we're told about a Nobleman whose son was at the point of death. This was in Cana, where Jesus had miraculously turned water to wine at a wedding. So this Nobleman would have had this event at the forefront of his mind - recalling what Jesus had done previously, giving rise to faith in reaching out to Jesus. What came out of his mouth however, was the fear-stricken statement - "my son dies!"

What words do you say about, or to, your child as they face their seemingly unending struggle? Do you say: " I've tried everything, and nothing works". Or do you, in a weary, stressed, I've-got-nothing-left moment tell them they're good for nothing? Please don't condemn yourself over this - I'm not condoning it, but beating yourself up isn't helpful - it actually gives the devil an inroad for all sorts of lies about yourself. It's time to hear a better report. The words you've spoken may be similar to the Nobleman's. Maybe the situation does appear to be `dead', or hopeless. But what was Jesus's report? "Go your way, your son lives." `Go your way' to me means that as far as possible, continue to live your life. Don't stop everything you would normally do because of what you're facing. Things may need to be altered, or rescheduled, but keep on living. It can seem a pretty tall order when our child may be at the point of literal or metaphorical death! But the point is, you need to trust God enough to take your hands off the situation, because as long as they're on it, He cannot deal with it. It really is too big for you, so change the narrative. By continuing in this way, with scriptures like the one above to stand on, you're allowing God in. By the way, the Nobleman's son indeed, did live, and so will your child.

Anyway, here are some practical tips to help through those rough terrains:

- Whenever your mind is bombarded with replays of things which you or they've said and done, maybe in angry outbursts, speak aloud: "my child lives". Make it a habit, several times a day or however many times it takes. In this way, you are speaking the Word of God and giving it free reign in your circumstances - which means the devil no longer has freedom to continue to cause turmoil.

- Get an image on the inside of your mind as you speak these words, of what your child "living" looks like. Maybe you see them at peace, enjoying life in a way they aren't right now. Or maybe it's a physical, long-term illness. See them doing what they haven't been able to. Get that picture in your head and the Word in your mouth.

- Last, but definitely not least, make God's Word your priority. Not only will it paint the true image of God's great plan for you and your child's life, but it will set your mind straight - "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he". Proverbs 23:7. Or as I like to say: "where the mind goes the man follows." 

Look up my brother, my sister,  things are about to change!