faithfulness is not velcro

When I first moved into my flat, I thought that those stick-on-velcro hooks would be a good idea for hanging up my saucepans.

Several weeks later, at around 2am one dark and dreary morning, I was (and presumably all my neighbours were too) woken up by an almighty cacophony, as all the pans fell off the wall at once, and crashed into the draining board.

Say what you like about it, proper nails drilled into the wall will always be better. Those cheap plastic hooks just had no ‘stickability’ after a while.

“Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens,

    your faithfulness to the skies.” - Psalm 36:5

Faithfulness is the ability to stick unwaveringly to a person, a promise, or a principle.

When it’s tough, when it’s easy, when it’s fun, when it’s not, faithful people remain true to what they’ve said, to whom they’ve promised, and to what they believe. And the reason is because that’s exactly what God does - He latches on, holds fast, never lets go, never loses stickability to His people, His promises, His principles.

Do you need extra stickability today? Do you feel like you live in a world of Velcro promises? Ask God to show you just how faithful He is, remind yourself of His love and His incredible stickability to you through the seasons. He won’t let you down; and He can show you how to be more faithful than Velcro will ever be.

gentleness and sunshine

You might know the old tale of the wind and the sun. One day, the wind decided to prove that he was more powerful than the sun, so he devised a contest: whoever could force a man’s coat from him would be the stronger. The wind blew hard and cold. But the more he blew, the more the man wrapped himself in his coat. Then the sun tried. She simply beamed, smiling happily in the early summer sky. Before long, the man took the coat off, all by himself.

Gentleness is really simple. It’s all about strength that’s under control, power that’s used to build people up, and not destroy. It’s kind words and thoughtful actions. It’s choosing the lightest touch when you’re tempted to pick the sledgehammer. In his letter to the Philippians and us, Paul says...

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.” - Philippians 4:4-5

Today, let’s practice the art of gentleness. It’s a great mistake to think that it means weakness when it’s actually the opposite: wise people know that real gentlemen and gentle women are strong enough not to be harsh, violent, rude or smug. Today, take a few moments to let your own power be restrained in favour of kindness and love, expressed with a gentle touch. And if in doubt, just beam like the sunshine, and be your best you.

self control boundaries

Mmmm. Chocolate cake. Crunchy brown icing, glimmering with dusted sugar; light, fluffy sponge, and a thick, gooey filling of lovely caramel between the soft textures  and that crisp chocolate finish. A fork rests temptingly by the plate. One smooth slice, just one crumbly, delicious bite, and it could all be mine...

I’m my own worst advisor sometimes. In situations like these, I need to be much better at self control!

But self control is about much more than just cake isn’t it? Here’s why it matters...

“Like a city whose walls are broken through

    is a person who lacks self-control.” - Proverbs 25:28

Self control, or self discipline, is really important. It keeps you from losing what you have inside, and it prevents you from allowing things in from outside that will damage you. It’s the art of building city-wall defences, and establishing good boundaries for your life.

Now here’s the good news: you can do this with the Holy Spirit! Self control is a fruit of living with Him in your heart, and even if you, like me, struggle with discipline, the Spirit has promised to be our helper. He’s the architect of our city walls.

Today, ask Him to help you build those boundaries. Ask Him to whisper to you in those chocolate-cake moments, and trust His voice. Then set your alarm early, put the cake away, freeze that credit card, leave the party, know your limits - whatever it takes to strengthen the walls.

the fire triangle

Sometimes people are said to be ‘on fire for Jesus’. Ever wondered what that means? I think it’s that they’re passionate rather than incendiary, but you get the picture. Everybody knows what ‘on-fire’ people like to talk about...

They used to say you need three things to keep a fire going: ignition, fuel, and oxygen. Paul, encouraging his friend Timothy to stay bright and burning, puts it like this...

“For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands.For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.” - 2 Timothy 1:6-7

In Paul’s fire triangle, the ‘fuel’ is you, the ‘ignition’ is the spark of God’s gift in you, and the ‘oxygen’ is the Spirit. It takes all three to get a blaze going.

So, if you’d like to be ‘on fire’ for the Lord, ask yourself today what kind of fuel your life is producing. Is it ready to be burned up?

Then, are you ready to be sparked into life by contact between God Himself and your potential? It might only take a moment of connection with the gift He’s given you.

Are you living in an atmosphere of power, love and self-discipline, where the Holy Spirit can breathe you into life? What might that look like for you today?

giantkillers or grasshoppers?

Imagine you’re in the crowd, waiting for the big reveal. The six weeks have passed and the twelve adventurers are finally back!

Moses is there. Aaron looks nervous as the crowd murmurs. Then, one by one from the folds of the tent, the explorers emerge... to rapturous applause! There’s Palti, Ammiel, Shammua, and Caleb. Nahbi, Gaddiel, Joshua, Sethur, Geuel, Igal; and Shaphat and Gaddi are carrying an enormous bunch of grapes.

Shammua begins to speak. The land is good and the fruit is abundant! He gestures to the grapes, suspended between Shaphat and Gaddi.

But... he says, that  eyes flicking to his fellow explorers, there are... giants in the land. The cities are fortified and packed with our enemies. We’ll be crushed.

You can hear hope evaporating. But then, with a roar, Caleb leaps to the front.

“Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, ‘We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it.’” - Numbers 13:30

His eyes are fierce and bright. Joshua stands alongside him. But the others aren’t convinced.

“We can’t do it!” protests Gaddi. “The land devours everything in it! We’re like grasshoppers compared to them!”

Joshua cries, “If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land ... and will give it to us!”

“Do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will devour them,” says Caleb, “Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them!’

The crowd around you is stunned into silence. It’s 10 against 2.

Moses looks out across the thousands of people and just for a second, seems to catch your eye.

What do you do? Which report will you believe?

thought capture

Paul had a problem. In a city called Corinth, where he’d started a church, ideas were taking root that were manipulative and deceitful. That kind of thing never does anyone any good, as I’m sure you know.

In Corinth, a small minority were using those ideas to try to undermine Paul from the inside out. He had to tackle it, and in doing so in a letter called 2 Corinthians, he unlocks something awesome for us too...

“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” - 2 Corinthians 10:5

This idea of ‘taking every thought captive’ is a key discipline. Sometimes, even in our own minds, our thoughts can run riot, undermining what God Himself has said to us. Paul is showing us here, that we can actually capture them, take them at swordpoint, and march them into submission before those thoughts can capture us.

Isn’t that amazing? God’s word (the sword of the Spirit) can help you take control of rogue thoughts, and bring them into line. Feel suddenly anxious because of a tiny thing? Suddenly thinking things that you wouldn’t normally entertain?

Today, if your daily life is interrupted by one of those thoughts, make sure you interrupt it and tell it exactly what God says.

the hall of incredibles

Hebrews 11 is a brilliant chapter. It lists Old Testament characters who showed astounding faith: Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Moses’ parents, the Israelites, Rahab, Gideon, Barak, Samson, David, Samuel, all the prophets, and others, who stepped out and trusted God when it mattered. It’s a proper who’s-who of groundbreaking, strong-in-the-Lord, world-changing, incredible heroes.

It’s with that group of incredibles in mind that chapter 12 begins.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” - Hebrews 12:1

The really awesome truth is that you and I are in that list too, running that same race, being cheered on by those very same incredibles, and the many thousands more who’ve followed them and now witness us, living where they had gone before.

It’s not just a crowd of Bible-blockbusters. Perhaps you, like me, can remember heroes of your own - great champions of faith we knew, who’ve now finished their race, and cheer us on from Heaven with God, in the hall of incredibles.

Today, let’s make sure we don’t get tangled up in sin, or take our eyes off Jesus. Let’s run. Let’s really live.

jars of clay

There are lots of times in the Bible when something brilliant got hidden inside something quite ordinary: a baby in a basket, a gold cup in a sack, a warrior in a wine press, a dreamer in a prison, a Saviour in a stable, treasure in jars of clay...

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.” - 2 Corinthians 4:7

In this bit of Paul’s letter to you, he says that you have a treasure inside you, the ‘light of the knowledge of God’s glory.” In other words, the brilliance of knowing God. Clay was temporary, sun-baked and quick; good for storage of scrolls, just like the Dead Sea scrolls. It was a very breakable material.

That’s what Paul is trying to tell us: God stores the eternal inside the breakable. Through every fracture-line and broken piece of your life, He wants to shine out to a world that needs His glory. He wants to prove to a waiting world that the light of Heaven can dwell in earth and soil, just as Jesus did.

So, are you a treasure carrier? Is the glory of knowing Jesus shining brightly from your life? Is the brilliant, the resplendent, the eternal, hidden inside you today? If you don’t think so, ask the Holy Spirit into your heart today and ask Him to help you shine. Have a brilliant day.

forgiveness

Let’s be honest. 

Sometimes it’s hard to forgive people. Our insides boil with rage like a volcano for a while, with flashes of fury and injustice whenever we see them or think about them. The hurt is hot, real, and painful. How can they not SEE how much pain they’ve caused? How could they treat me like this?

The Bible asks us to do something really difficult with this volcanic hot mess. Have a look at this from 1 Peter...

“Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.” - 1 Peter 3:8-9

Repay evil with a blessing? Really? But of course that’s exactly what Jesus did for us - He forgave us, even when we far away from Him. Likewise, He asks us to forgive others around us too, especially when we don’t feel like it. And part of the reason is that unforgiveness is a dangerous thing to hold onto...

Eventually, volcanoes cool down, and those rivers of bubbling lava solidify into solid, cold rock, impossible to move - the landscape is reshaped forever.

If there’s anyone you need to forgive today, do it quickly before the pain solidifies and the relationship cools. Ask Jesus to show you compassion and humility, and make the choice to let unforgiveness go.

boatloads

Once, Jesus, a carpenter, told some fisherman to throw their nets out into the Sea of Galilee. You can read the story in Luke 5. They catch so many fish that their two boats begin to sink! Then Jesus calls them to leave their nets behind, and follow Him.

What did they do with all that fish?

A rough estimate is that it would weigh about 63,000lbs which is something like 28 metric tonnes of fish! It would be worth several years’ wages.

Did they sell it to fund their ministry? Perhaps they gave it away, or just left the huge pile there to rot? They might even have thrown it all back in the sea! 

The point is that the Bible doesn’t tell us, because the miracle isn’t really the focus of the story. In fact, it never is - it’s always Jesus. Something made those men leave their nets behind, something changed their whole worldview that day, and something made them follow.

This is the best response to a miracle - follow Jesus. Never make it about the creation before you make it about the creator. When God gives us boatloads, it could be to bless someone, it could be a launching pad to provide for a new season, or it could just be a crowd-gatherer! Whatever it is, we’re to leave our nets behind every time, and simply follow Jesus.

the company of the broken hearted

Do you ever feel like a failure? Like you’ve massively let God down? Think about this...

Moses killed an Egyptian and ran away. Jacob cheated his way into someone else’s blessing. Paul persecuted Christians, Peter denied knowing Jesus altogether, the disciples hid from the cross, Noah got drunk, James and John wanted God to actually airstrike a village, and David, the greatest king Israel had ever had, stole another man’s wife and had him killed out of jealousy.

How does your failure match up?

The truth is that God is familiar with failure, and yet somehow in ways we can’t understand, He still uses people who failed... to change the world! Here’s what David said after he spectacularly messed up:

“My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit;

    a broken and contrite heart

    you, God, will not despise.” - Psalm 51:17

David understood the heart of God so well! He knew that what counted after failing was repentance through the tears; a sacrifice of worship without hiding the truth of what he’d done.

If you feel as though you’ve let God down recently, read the whole of Psalm 51 today and see if you can capture David’s attitude from his words. We’re built to learn from our failure, never hide from it. God loves you enough to let his amazing grace work through your weakness. And you’re in good company, the company of the broken hearted.

heavy rucksacks

The Scouts have a motto: “Be prepared.” It’s good advice! Sometimes though, we’re so prepared for all eventualities that we end up lugging round rucksacks and handbags and cars and cases, full of useful stuff we rarely need. And after a while that stuff gets heavy.

I think worry and anxiety can be a bit like that. We were once prepared for a situation that needed action, then that situation started adding worries and emotions to our rucksacks. Now everything is heavy.

Here’s what Peter says we should do...

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”- 1 Peter 5:6-7

Humbling yourself might involve swallowing some pride and tackling a tricky situation head on. It could mean letting go of a thing, so that God’s mighty hand can take over. This is how to be lifted up: don’t be proud, let God embrace the humble.

Then, cast your anxiety His way. Give it all to Jesus knowing that He cares for you. Empty out that bag, that rucksack, that car: do a stock-take on what you need for the journey and what it’s time to let go of. I reckon that’s the best way to ‘be prepared’ for anything.

the apple

There’s a theory that to be the ‘apple’ of someone’s eye means to be so close to them that you can see your own reflection in their pupils.

That’s close, isn’t it? Here’s how the psalmist puts it...

“Keep me as the apple of your eye;

    hide me in the shadow of your wings” - Psalm 17:8

This is a type of intimacy that God loves - close enough to hear His heart, and be covered by His feathers. Near enough to be eyeball to eyeball.

What’s more, when we get so close, we start to see ourselves just like He does. No-one else views you the same as the apple of your eye, and similarly, He starts to see Himself in us too. That’s a beautiful thing about intimacy - you begin to reflect each other, and somehow see each other in each other. Wouldn’t it be great to see yourself as God the Father sees you? Wouldn’t it be amazing if He could see Himself in you?

Today, if you’d like to be closer to God, that is always a good prayer to pray - keep me as the apple of Your eye, hide me in the shadow of Your wings. Intimacy is a beautiful thing.

the door with no handle

There’s a very famous painting by the artist William Holman Hunt, called ‘The Light of the World’.

It shows Jesus wearing a crown of thorns and standing outside a door that’s overgrown with ivy. He’s carrying a lantern and knocking on the door, but also looking out of the picture at us. Holman Hunt, who was a Christian, included the text:

“Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.” - Revelation 3:20

The shut door has no handle on the outside. It can only be opened from within.

Sometimes, without realising it, our lives can get overgrown, when our hearts aren’t used to being open. Hardened opinions, hurt from the past, bitterness we’ve shared or relationships we’ve lost? We say things like, “I’ll not make that mistake again!” or “I’ll never trust, I’ll never be able to forgive...” Tears run deep sometimes. And hurt is painful to hold on to.

But here, the Bible’s giving us the first step to help us deal with it. Open your heart to Jesus - the Saviour-King who promises to be with us in our suffering, taking our wounds and bringing our healing. He is, as Holman Hunt described, the light of the world, and He’s waiting for you, just the other side of the Door with No Handle. Only you can let Him in.

starlight

Abram stood gazing into the night sky. The cool desert wind blew softly on his face, carrying with it the flickering scent of herbs, cooked meat, and woodsmoke. Voices laughed around the nearby fire, and sparks flew upwards.

Above the black mountains, the sky was bursting with light. Stars filled the void with colour, in every direction, burning across the heavens in the great arc of wonder. They beamed through time and space. Abram was silent.

“Count them, if indeed you can,” said a voice in his heart. “So shall your offspring be.”

There’s so much hope around when God starts speaking isn’t there? Impossible becomes possible, night shines as bright as day, and the whole world is suddenly lit by promise.

Abram believed God. And you and I are here, heirs to that same promise, shining like stars in the universe. One day a descendant of Abram, from the tribe of his great-great grandson would make a way for you and I to be included in the great company of Heaven itself - an heir of the promise. One of those stars that night, was lit for you.

I wonder whether you see the starlight in your own life? To Abram, you are evidence that the impossible is possible, that God is true to His promises even when they seem ridiculous. Abram believed God and it was counted as righteousness. And here you are.

So. What will you do?

fig tree

Jesus, it seems, is always doing something surprising. One morning, on the way into Jerusalem with his disciples, He makes a point about fruitfulness, by talking to a tree...

“Seeing a fig-tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, ‘May you never bear fruit again!’ Immediately the tree withered.” - Matthew 21:19

You don’t mess with the Fruit-Inspector! The fig tree, for all its leaves, was just not producing anything: the one thing it was designed and created to do, and the one moment in history it was responsible to do it! When it mattered, it had nothing to give.

If you’re like me, I bet you don’t want to miss your moment. When Jesus passes by your life, looking for your fruit, what will He find you producing? Love, joy, patience? What will He hear you say? Kind things, goodness, gentleness? What will He see you doing?

The disciples were amazed at how quickly that tree withered. No fruit, no seeds, no next generation. Dead wood. And every time they went into the city from then on, they would have seen it, reminding them to be faithful and fruitful. I think it’s good advice. Remember the fig tree.

entrusted

Have you ever been trusted with something valuable? The fear of losing it or damaging it is huge, isn’t it? And it’s much bigger than if it were your own thing. That’s because there’s also a weight of trust that’s given to us - and trust is hard to get back if you lose it.

In Matthew 25, Jesus tells a story about a man who entrusts his gold to his three servants before going on a long journey. Two of the servants invest the gold really wisely and double their money by the time the master gets back. The third does nothing, other than hide his portion in a hole in the ground. The master is furious.

Everything God trusts us with He expects to grow. After all, gold is pointless in the ground! Ministry, relationship, children, our lives, our work, our families, our planet - we should always aim to leave those things better than when we started.

The good news is that you can do it. Whatever’s in your hand today, whatever you’ve been entrusted with, you can grow it bigger and better, ready for the next generation of entrusted ones! There’s still time.

Trust is all about relationship. The lazy servant didn’t really know the master at all. But you can! And the more you get to know Him the more He entrusts you, and the more opportunity you have of changing the world for the better.

david and goliath

Integrity is what you do when no-one’s watching. It’s a very powerful quality, isn’t it? Almost every day it seems there are celebrities who might have done better to remember that.

David was just a boy on an errand. His real job was looking after sheep, but on this particular day, he was sent to the battlefield, where Goliath was busy taunting the armies of Israel.

You know the story: he overhears the roaring Goliath, he refuses Saul’s armour, he defies the giant, and slingshots a stone into his forehead. Thud. Silenced.

But where was the battle really won?

“But David said to Saul, ‘Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it.” - 1 Samuel 17:34-35

We all face battles; some giants bigger than others. The truth is though that many of our battles are actually won in secret, out there in the places where integrity matters, where no-one is watching other than God. The victory is on the training ground. David knew God’s heart that day because he’d spent time with Him.

You have battles ahead too. Temptations, trials, difficult giants might be heading your way. How will you prepare? What will you do out there where no-one can see you?

refreshing others

Want to know a secret? It’s not really the kind of thing you hear people say; it’s not exactly in the way society likes it, but it is true nonetheless, and it is ancient and beautiful, and totally awesome. Here it is:

“He who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.” - Proverbs 11:25

What this means is that if you lack something, you can actually give it away to someone else, in order to receive it!

I know: it makes no sense, at least logically. But God has a different view of economics to us, and I think it works like this: He is the father who gives all good things. That means that He lacks nothing, and so, if you’re willing, He can pour blessing through you, to those around you. In fact, He wants you to overflow with those things, into a dry and weary world. That’s why Jesus champions serving others, why Paul tells us to think of each other more highly than ourselves and why you’re meant to live full and die empty.

The key to being refreshed then is to refresh those around you!

So, what do you need today? Companionship? Find someone to bless with your time. Financial miracles? Pour out so that God can pour in! Comfort? Strength? Love? Let God flow through you so that you yourself can be refreshed by Him. 

yes and amen

Have you ever been promised something and then let down when it wasn’t delivered? Or perhaps you’ve made promises in the past and you’ve just not been able to keep them?

We’ve all been there. It makes promises harder to trust doesn’t it? But the Bible says that God’s promises are always true, and through the pages of Scripture there are over 3,000 of them! God isn’t backward about making promises!

In fact, the idea of a promise is that it’s forward! The word means to ‘put forward’. It originally meant to cast before, or throw ahead; that means when someone ‘casts out’ a promise, you have the opportunity to take it, to believe it, or not. Offering a promise gives someone the opportunity to trust you.

The same is true of God. There are promises with your name on, and He’s offering you the chance to trust that what He said was, is, and will always be true.

“For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.” - 2 Corinthians 1:19-20

Today, let’s lean in to the promises He’s made. And if you’re not sure what they are, there are 3,000 of them there in the Bible! Why not search them out and start believing them? It’ll make your day, I promise.

worst of the worst

Did you ever hear the story about how Jesus invited himself to dinner with the worst person in town? It’s in Luke 19: the story of the tax collector who climbed a tree. Zacchaeus was awful - he worked for the Romans and extorted his position to get rich off the back of ordinary people; a traitor, barely better than a thief; the worst of the worst.

And yet, at the end of this story, when he’s met with Jesus, something extraordinary has happened to Zacchaeus...

“Look Lord!” he exclaims, “Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount!”

It’s amazing what having an unplanned dinner with Jesus can do! What happened?

In an instant, a whole town was better off because one man climbed a tree out of curiosity, and another man saw the best of the best in the worst of the worst.

Perhaps today there are areas of your own life you need Jesus to gatecrash. Or perhaps you know you need help to see the best in people, just like Jesus did. Either way, it starts with seeking Him first, letting Him see the real you, and then inviting Him in.

wise

Sometimes sin hides itself behind a good time. Go to that party? Sure, nothing wrong with that! Coffee with that person? It’s only coffee! And yet so many slippery slopes begin with it’s onlys and nothing- wrong-with-thats.

Many famous pastors and leaders who’ve stumbled would probably give a thousand worlds to go back and undo those ‘it’s only’ moments. 

Thankfully, God gives us an awesome tool to recognise what might be the beginning of a slippery slope. The Bible calls it wisdom. Wisdom lets you discern dangerous situations that look innocuous. It helps you set boundaries and it encourages you to be accountable. It marks out maturity.

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,

  and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

For through wisdom your days will be many.” - Proverbs 9:10-11

Today, ask God for wisdom in every decision, big or small. He knows exactly what we’re like, what situations we struggle with and where we need to be careful, even when it isn’t obvious! Read Proverbs 9 to find out more about the difference between wisdom and folly, and let God speak to you today. It might just save your life.