TRUST

Do not worry do not fear

let your heart be still

for who on earth of mortal man

can always know God's will

But this we know - who worship Him

by faith shall live the just

For then we see the power of

the One in whom we trust

You will keep him in perfect peace

who's mind is stayed upon You, because he

trusts in You.  Trust in the Lord forever, for

the Lord God is an everlasting rock.

Isaiah  ch.26, vs.3 and 4

My near death experience

I was twenty eight years old at the time, I was in a dental surgery having two wisdom teeth taken out with the aid of gas.  As I sat in the chair with the mask on my face, the dentist commenced to take one of  the teeth out before I was fully anaesthetized.  The pain was unbelievable and the shock of experiencing it so great that I inhaled fully and found, to my horror, that I could not exhale again.  I remember feeling very frightened and helpless for quite some time, thinking that I was certainly going to die from lack of oxygen.  I was trying to do something about the situation but it was as if there was just enough anaesthetic to keep me half dazed yet I could feel all the pain.  As I struggled to breathe the dentist had his assistant to hold me down and started to extract the other tooth.  The feeling of total agony was indescribable.  Then suddenly all the fear was gone and I was in a most beautiful place where there was green grass and beautiful flowers, and little fawns and wild animals grazing everywhere.

 I was lying on my back in a place of tremendous beauty, a beauty of such that I have never seen in all my travels in this world.  It was as if I had just awoken from a deep sleep, my twenty eight years of life was as the dream and that was reality.   I remember several people were gathered around me.  I felt a great love for these people, a love that was deeper than any I had ever known, almost as if they were a part of myself.  They were not people that I had known or seen in my lifetime, I cannot even say whether they were male or female, it did not seem to matter.  Yet I felt like I had known them for an eternity.  At that moment I knew the mystery of life.  It was as if all the questions I had ever wanted answering about life's purpose were being answered in a split second of wonderfully perfect knowledge.  I felt as if that place was reality and my whole twenty eight years of lifetime was just as fleeting and unimportant as a dream.  I remember a feeling which can only be identified with how the prodigal son must have felt on returning home to his father.

 

This quickly changed to a feeling of tremendous sorrow and disappointment as one of these beautiful people said ' It's not time yet, you must go back.'  I seemed to know that what was being said was said with authority and that I would very soon be leaving them.  I knew also that there was no personal decision made by these people as to whether I was to stay or not, only that this was how it had to be.  I remember saying with great sadness in my heart ' I don't want to go back.,' only to be told ' You must go back'  Then I felt as if I was spinning around in a tunnel and being drawn backwards at tremendous speed.  The speed was so great that although I knew I was spinning, I appeared to remain in an upright position, almost like the propeller of an aircraft appears to remain still,  when rotating at high speed. The next thing I knew, I was in the dentist's chair and I started to cry.  I wanted to tell them that I was in the wrong place, but I did not know how to explain.  I tried to remember what it was that I had known and understood in my moment of revelation in that beautiful place, but the knowledge had been taken away from me as suddenly as it had been given to me.

 

I will never forget the torment of the next three days or so, my poor husband thought I was going to have a breakdown.  For nearly a week after my experience, each morning my husband would say to me 'You was speaking in a foreign language in your sleep last night'.  I said to him the first morning 'What do you mean a foreign language,  was I muttering?'  'No' he said 'you was speaking in a foreign language'. I tried to explain my experience to him and to several people but they all put it down to the anaesthetic.  How could I convince them that this had been no dream, that it was more real than anything else I had ever experienced.  I'd had dreams before, under normal circumstances and under anaesthetic, and this was totally different.  Eventually I tucked my memories of my wonderful experience away in my heart knowing that despite other people's disbelief, I was now convinced that I had proof that there was something more than this life, and I was also convinced that it had something to do with the God of the Bible, the God that my father had believed in.  I seemed to be experiencing glimpses of His supernatural power at different times in my life, and it was making me more and more aware of Him.  I did not understand why or how this had happened to me, but I knew that it had happened, and nobody on this earth could persuade me otherwise.


Some years later three separate incidents in my life were to strengthen this conviction.  I read that the actor, Peter Sellers had also had a 'near death experience' and he too was told that he had to come back as his time here was not finished, and  I came to live next door but one to a girl who had exactly the same experience as myself, also in a dental surgery, with the very same words spoken to her.  Seven years later I became born again of God's Holy Spirit, receiving the gift of tongues, a language I had never learnt, after being baptized in water and suddenly I felt a connection with my experience seven years previous.  Then I read two passages in the Bible.  One which spoke of a person experiencing a similar incident, also being told things that they were not permitted to speak about:-  ' I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago—whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows—such a one was caught up to the third heaven And I know such a man—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows—  how he was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.' (2 Corinthians ch. 12 vs. 2,3 and 4. } Here the place 'paradise' is also called the 'third heaven' a few verses down.

The other passage was  Jeremiah ch. 1 v. 5 , where God says to Jeremiah 'Before I formed you in the womb I knew you.'

These scriptures were the greatest comfort to me, and verified what had happened to me and where I had been taken to seven years previous. 

Second chance

 Once again I have felt led to repost something I wrote some years ago on my blog, to give all glory to God and His Son Jesus, and their presence in my life:-

The following is a song that I wrote after I had come to know Jesus as my Saviour, and was one of the songs I used to sing in the streets with a Christian friend.  I write this song on my blog as a testimony to the love and compassion that I have found in that Saviour.

Second chance

Listen all you people there's a story to be told
a wondrous tale of beauty talked about in days of old
It speaks about a mystery, a beautiful romance
how the God of all creation gave this world a second chance
A second chance to walk with God, to become His holy child
to be rescued from our wretchedness, and to Him be reconciled
by believing on Jesus, the lamb who was slain
that we might be accepted by the Father again
No more to be in torment, no more to be in shame
when we trust on our Saviour and the power in His name
Yes the Father sent Jesus just to save you and me
He's the bread sent from Heaven, He's the life-giving tree
So turn from your hard labour, come out from slavery
for the Son of God released you on that cross at Calvary
Don't let sin be your master, come shout sing and dance
for the Lord God of Heaven has given us a second chance

There are two other songs which I felt to put on this post.  The first one is a song in which I felt the Lord was speaking to me, and the second one is me speaking to God, in a prayer that I made, and still do make, for others.

Weep no more child

Lost in the world, I was entangled in sin and shame
Lord that was when I met You
Then from my grave I heard You calling, calling my name
with a voice that was gentle but true
'Turn around my child, and look at me'
were the words that were piercing my heart
'Turn around from your sin, be set free
come to me and make a new start'
Then water so pure and crystal clear
was washing away all my doubt and my fear
and the tears ran free, as you said to me......

'Weep no more child, I have bought your peace
I have suffered in your place
All the blows the world has dealt you
I have taken on my face
Turn around, turn around and I will forgive
Turn around, turn around, turn around child and live
For I take no pleasure in the death of a soul
Turn around, seek my face child, and I'll make you whole

Strive no more child, I can bring release
I regained what you had lost
Righteousness was purchased for you
when they nailed me to that cross
Turn around, turn around, and I will forgive
Turn around, turn around, turn around child and live
For I take no pleasure in the death of a soul
Turn around, seek my face child, and I'll make you whole

Sin no more child, turn and look at me
see that I have paid the price
So that you could have salvation
I became the sacrifice
Turn around, turn around and I will forgive
Turn around, turn around, turn around child and live
For I take no pleasure in the death of a soul
Turn around, seek my face child, and I'll make you whole

Somewhere

Somewhere someone's hurting Lord
somewhere someone's hurting
A wife has left her husband
and he's crying in despair
he doesn't know there's a comforter
he doesn't know You're there
Lord reach out and comfort him
send help from above
send help from the sanctuary
let the world see Your love

Somewhere someone's dying Lord
somewhere someone's dying
The doctors shake their heads and say
' There's nothing can be done '
but they've never seen a miracle
performed by God's own Son
Lord reach out and heal him
send help from above
send help from the sanctuary
let the world see Your love    

Somewhere someone's crying Lord
somewhere someone's crying
her tears are shed for all mankind
she knows the end is near
but she doesn't know there's a perfect love
that casts out every fear
Lord reach out and love her
send help from above
send help from the sanctuary
let the world see Your love

Somewhere someone's waiting Lord
somewhere someone's waiting
They've heard there's hope in Jesus Christ
the name above them all
so they're waiting for their Lord's return
responding to Your call
Lord, you've reached out to us
God sent help from above
He sent help from His sanctuary
when He sent You, His perfect love

In my thirty five years of knowing Jesus, I have come to know, and am still learning about, that perfect love of God  that wants to change us into the image of His Son, but understands that we are flesh.  I have never come across anything so compassionate, longsuffering and powerful.  That love has the ability to change me, not by force, but by placing in me the knowledge that the change would bring about the most beautiful peace in my soul that I could ever imagine.

Jesus went to the stable for me

 Jesus went to the stable for me
born in a human likeness was He
a babe in a manger He was to be 
just as the Father told Him
There He lay with the cattle and sheep
placed on a bed of straw to sleep
every word in His heart to keep
just as the Father told Him 
Jesus went to the desert for me
taunted and tempted by Satan was He
but Jesus answered words of victory
just as the Father told Him
‘You shall have everything you see’
Satan said ‘If you worship me’
‘To God alone will I bow’ said he
just as the Father told Him
Jesus went to the mountain for me
Spoke with Elijah and Moses did He
there He was given all authority
just as the Father told Him
‘We’ll build booths for these two’ they said
‘see they have come back from the dead’
‘My Son alone will you hear instead’
was just what the Father told them
Jesus came in the Spirit for me
Comforter, counsellor, healer is He
and from the curse I have been set free
just as the Father tells me
Now my heart and my mind are stirred
I must act on what I have heard
and I shall live by God’s every word
just as the Father tells me

The window of opportunity

 'Stay in bed for the day' my husband said' get rid of that cold'. 'Hmm.. I thought, maybe I will have a few hours in bed.'  I could do with a rest. So I had stayed in bed that morning and much of the afternoon.

As I was laying there, gazing out through the window, I watched the people passing by in the street and reflected on how their lives might be, on whether there might be sadness behind the smile, or worry and anxiety behind the sombre look.  I thought of how little we might know about one another's lives, whether we be workmates, neighbours or even strangers. After a while my husband brought me a cup of tea and I started to feel a little better, and decided to read.  I looked at the books on my shelves and chose a book of poems called 'In Memory Of', a collection of poets' tributes to, and memories of, friends and loved ones that had died.

As I read poem after poem of people's feelings, some of joyful memories and some of grief, I began to realize that God was revealing to me what I had pondered on earlier while gazing through my window.  He was now showing me what lay behind a face in the street, revealing to me people's innermost feelings, people who were mostly hurting through loss and loneliness.

I don't believe that God does anything by chance. I am a Christian and 'every day in my life is written in His book  before even one of them was formed.' 

As I lay in my bed I had to question my part in life as far as my fellow man was concerned.  I read on and became filled with compassion for the people who had allowed me to see into their lives. 

I know that on that day, when I was brought to see inside the hearts and minds of others, I felt compassion which brought in turn responsibility. I have been made aware of the loneliness and suffering of others, Christians included, and it has compelled me to play my part in life to the best of my ability.  May the Lord help me always to be alert to where, and when, I may help another.

One poem in particular about a man who was grief stricken at the loss of his soul mate and looked to God for release filled me with such sadness that it brought me to write this poem which contains, I suppose, my own deepest feelings.

THE WINDOW

'Twas sickness caused me on that day 

to rest and in my bed to lay

while through my window I could see 

the world outside did not need me

It carried on its busy life 

regardless of my pain and strife

Yet as I gazed upon the scene 

that lay beyond lace covered screen

I wondered at each passer by.... 

if face reflected truth or lie

I lay in comfort needing naught 

my husband food and drink had brought

but for my mind to idle be 

was nothing short of misery

Then suddenly my eye was cast 

upon my books - a treasure vast

A book of poems I should read 

to satisfy my spirit's need

To see what lay within the mind 

of other beings of my kind

I turned the pages one by one... 

a stirring journey had begun

For hidden there in every leaf 

was joy and sorrow, love and grief

A vast collection here was seen  

of frozen dreams that might have been

of past regrets and loneliness  

sweet memories of tenderness

lost loves and breaking of the heart 

when sudden death caused to depart

a soul mate of so many years

My burning cheeks felt cooling tears

Such moving stories I had read 

as I lay sick upon my bed

a window had been shown to me 

through which I 'd seen reality

of pain that lay behind a smile  

of need to go the extra mile

What of my part in life I thought 

What words of comfort had I brought

in all my years upon this Earth  

What words of love, support and worth

had touched the lives of those I'd met  

Was there remorse, was there regret?

What use is it if kindly word 

is left in thought and never heard?

This world that from my bed I saw, 

that looked so proud and strong before

has need of me.... and I of it, 

each soul to do its special bit

To share with others words of love  

God's seeds of blessing from above

is all that may be asked of me 

to help to set another free

from pain and hurt and misery 

that death and loss has caused to be

But seeds can never come to birth 

unless they're planted in the earth

So Father help me in my life 

to ease another person's life

to seek my Lord to try to do 

the things that I have learned from You

and may You cause my eyes to see 

windows of opportunity

to stretch a tender loving hand 

towards the suffering in this land,

to sow Your seeds of love and peace  

that word and deed might bring release 

How do we think

I feel to republish a post I wrote some time ago. 

I had a dream in which I was trying to speak to a very important person on the phone but could not get connected. This brought me to think of how we, as believers, connect with God. Do we connect with Him through the carnal mind or the mind of Christ as spoken of in 1 Corinthians ch. 2 v.16:- 

'For who has known the mind of the LORD, that he may instruct Him? But we have the MIND OF CHRIST.' This is saying that when we have been born again of the Holy Spirit and  are spiritually  part of the body of Christ on earth, as stated in 1 Corinthians vs. 12 and 13 ( For in one Spirit we were all baptised into one body, whether Jews, or Greeks , slave or free, and we were all given one Spirit to drink...) then we  have the mind of Christ. 

Isaiah ch. 55 vs. 8 and 9 clearly states that Gods thoughts and ways are totally different to mankind's thoughts and ways :- 'For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways' declares the LORD.
Do we argue with that Word?

Job ch. 40 v.2 states:-

' Shall he that contends with the Almighty instruct Him? he that reproves God, let him answer it.'

This is how Paul the Apostle spoke to believers in Ephesians ch. 4 vs 22-24 regarding how they should be in Christ:-

'You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires, to be made new in the attitude of your minds, and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.'

Jesus' Words to us, enlightened by the Holy Spirit,  are what enable us to work out our salvation, and just as He did, we too can learn obedience through the things we suffer, trials strengthening us as we journey on.  Hebrews ch. 5 vs. 8 and 9 state:- 'though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him,'  and I see through this that to 'obey' Him means to 'act' on the Word spoken to us as believers, and not just be 'hearers' of that Word.

Recently, the cover on my mobile phone broke and I needed to buy a new one. I do not buy on line and asked my daughter in law if she would order one for me. She went through several of them for me, asking which one I would like, many with butterflies on which I said would be the right one but which were out of stock.  She came to one with a picture of a lion on it and asked me would I like it. I said 'I love lions' , so she ordered it for me. She said 'What will you call the lion?' I started thinking about this and suddenly she said to me 'Did you say 'Judah'? I said to her that I had not said a word. She could not believe it, and said she literally had goose bumps on her arms.

Isaiah ch. 61 v.10 reads:-

I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For He has clothed me with garments of salvation and ARRAYED ME in a robe of HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS.' 

1 Corinthians ch. 1 v.30 reads:-

'It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, Who has BECOME for us wisdom from God: our RIGHTEOUSNESS, holiness and redemption....'

If the scriptures say that He has become our righteousness, and also that God has arrayed me in a robe of righteousness, I believe absolutely that what happened with my daughter in law regarding my phone cover is a sign from the Lord accompanying His Word.

What I have on my mobile screen is a picture of a sea and the words 'Walk on water', signifying that I must keep my eyes focused on the Lord, and not on the tribulations in my life.  Now that there will be a lion covering on that statement it speaks Spiritually to me that as long as I keep my eyes upon the Lord, Who is the Word of God, then I shall be covered by His righteousness.

I end this post with a section of 2 Corinthians ch. 10 v.5  that has greatly encouraged me to change my way of thinking.

'.......bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ' 

 Every morning, before I start my day, I open my Bible to read the Word. This morning I read Psalm ch. 9, and these words really spoke to me. 

'But the Lord sits enthroned for ever, He has established His throne for judgement, and He judges the world with righteousness, He judges the people with equity. The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble, and those who know Thy name put their trust in Thee, for Thou, O Lord, hast not forsaken those who seek Thee. Sing praises to the Lord Who dwells in Zion! Tell among the peoples His deeds! For He Who avenges blood is mindful of them, He does not forget the cry of the afflicted.'  vs. 7-12

The following is a picture poem I wrote and painted a long time ago. I have probably shared this before, but it continues to speak to me daily.

Love one another as I have loved you

 This story is a true story about something that happened in my life some years ago.

The other day a neighbour's cat came to my house crying for food. At first I sent it away.  'It is not my responsibility', I thought, 'It belongs to my neighbour'.  The plight of the cat got worse and she grew thinner and thinner until I felt I had to give the cat some food.  It didn't matter whose cat it was, she was starving.  Maybe the owners couldn't afford to buy cat food, maybe they were feeding it a food which it couldn't eat, or maybe they just didn't care about it.  Whatever the reason, I had let the fact that it was someone else's cat blind me to the fact that it was starving.  I had food to give it, we have three cats of our own, and it had to be fed or it could starve to death.

God spoke to me through this incident. He brought me to realize how easily I could have looked the other way and tried to justify myself by saying 'The problem is not mine.'  The truth of the matter was that the problem was not mine until I was made aware of it.  The cat had come to my door and I as a believer know that the cat does not really belong to my neighbour, it belongs to God.  'The earth is the Lord's and the fullness therein.' (Psalm 24).

Sometimes we are reluctant to share what we have, not only the material things but also the spiritual things, because we think it will cause a loss to us. However, the Lord tells us to give and it shall be given to us (Luke ch. 6 v.38).  Whatever God has given to us is to be given out to others where there is a need, we need not fear that we shall suffer through our giving.  In fact we are more likely to suffer through our lack of giving, especially where sharing our faith is concerned. If a plant was to be put in a vessel that did not have any holes in the bottom, water being poured into it frequently would soon cause the plant to rot.  If there are holes in the vessel the plant will take what it needs through it's root system, and the excess will flow out, keeping the plant healthy.

However, no gardener will add water to a plant that is already saturated and in danger of rotting because the water hasn't been allowed to drain away. So let us make sure our vessels have holes in them, and that the 'water of the Word' that we have been given will be shared in this world, just like the widow in 1 Kings ch. 17 shared her bread. Let us all try to be like the widow woman who trusted the Word of the Lord so much that she gave to Elijah when he was in need before she took for herself and her son.  It is by our works that we show faith.  Let us share both the things that we have in this world, and also our faith, through the BREAD OF THE WORD.  God is faithful, 'the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail' according to the word of the Lord for the widow woman, and neither will it for us. For the Lord knows what things we have need of before we ask.

A CHILD IS DYING IN THE STREET

IT CRIES ALOUD FOR BREAD

DO YOU GIVE OF WHAT YOU HAVE

OR WATCH IT 'TIL IT'S DEAD

A WORLD WAS DYING IN IT'S SIN

IT DIDN'T ASD FOR 'BREAD'

GOD COULD HAVE GIVEN PUNISHMENT

HE GAVE HIS SON INSTEAD

Yes, let us love one another in the same way that God loved us.

When the Lord is the 'gardener' we need not fear that He will neglect to 'water' us. Proverbs ch. 11 v.35 says 'The generous man will be prosperous. And he who waters will himself  be watered.' 

A child is returning home

The scriptures say that in the end times many shall fall away from the faith, and that is just what is happening in these times. I believe Jesus  will be returning soon to take up the remnant, and that it is so important that we repent on the things we may have done wrong and turn back to having God's ways and thoughts. The following is a poem I wrote some time ago regarding my thoughts on this.

A CHILD IS RETURNING HOME

The Lord looked down from Heaven
and said to His angels one night

'There's an empty house in Jerusalem

that needs to be filled with my light'

My Father says 'Make this house ready

a child is returning home

Go, welcome him into my sanctuary

and tell him no more will he roam

Tell him his Lord has redeemed him

and not for the good deeds he's done

but because the Father has loved him

and he trusted upon His Son'

So come, let us make this house ready

and fill it with goodness tonight

for a child that was lost has come home again

to be blessed by the Father of Light

 

Something from nothing

You make something from nothing

Lord I know this is true

for You took the old 'me'

and made something brand new

You turned pain and sorrow

to laughter and joy

saved what Satan was trying

so hard to destroy

Now my life is complete

while I'm standing in You

and each trial and temptation

You carry me through

I can see as my training

for the work I must do

as I tell of Salvation

God's grace brought me through You

If only

If only I could speak a word

to everyone who's never heard

If I could tell them why You died

then Jesus - I'd be satisfied

If I could touch a troubled heart

with words of life that I'd impart

and see the turmoil being stilled

then Lord - my life would be fulfilled

And if I'd see a broken soul 

crying out to be made whole

I'd tell them, Lord, of Calvary

and how you came to set us free

But just to do this simple thing

to sing the song I want to sing

I must have Your authority

for only You can set men free

So Father grant this power to me

that captives might have liberty

anoint with oil this mortal head

then by Your Spirit raise the dead

 As a believer, and part of the body of Christ on earth our duty is to spread the gospel to as many people as the Lord leads us to. The following are a poem and a song that I wrote some time ago that reflects how I feel regarding this.

Lord take us to the prisoners

Lord take us to the prisoners

Lord lead us to the ones that are bound

Lord take us to the weary

give rest to their souls

cause the lost to be found

Lord take us to the injured

Lord lead us to the ones that are lame

Lord take us to the helpless

give sight to the blind

by the power in Your name

Lord take us to the thirsty

Lord lead us to the ones that are dry

Lord take us to the lost ones

and open our ears to their pitiful cry

 You are my God

You are my God, you are my king

You are my prince of peace

You are my everything

You have the power and the authority

to bring down each stronghold and principality

and I worship, and I worship

and I worship You my Lord

You are the chosen One of the great I AM

You are the Holy One of the risen Lamb

You are the Prince of peace

and the king of kings

and I worship You

and I worship You

Do not fear

I feel led to repost something I posted a few years ago.

After Gedaliah's death at Mizpah, the remnant that was left of the people who had been at Mizpah wanted to return to Egypt because they were afraid of reprisals from Babylon.  They asked Jeremiah to ask God the way they should go and what they should do.  Jeremiah said he would ask God.  They became afraid while waiting ten days for an answer.

 

Sometimes when we ask God for direction when we are afraid, if God does not answer us straight away we make our own decisions as to what to do.  Then, when we are shown what to do by God through the Holy Spirit enlightening the scriptures to us, the fear that has built up while waiting has taken over.  They were warned that if they went back to Egypt whereas then they put it 'they would not see war or trumpet or be hungry' then the very things they feared would destroy them. This can be true in our own walk with the Lord to the promised land.

When we lived in a previous house I split an opium poppy plant that I had bought into two separated pieces and put the pieces in two pots with compost in them.  One piece quickly grew leaves and several buds, the other had none,  and when the first bud flowered it was of a red-orange colour, not salmon pink.  Then the other plant started to grow small but lighter coloured leaves and buds that eventually opened out into pink flowers.  I wondered if the plant I originally bought had been a combination of two plants.  I have since purchased two other plants that appeared to be a mix of two separate plants in one pot, a Christmas cactus and  a fuchsia, both of which have red and pink flowers.

The Lord has also been showing me very strange happenings.  A sculptor balancing rocks that seemed to defy gravity, and a dog walking on a tightrope.  I believe He has been answering my prayer to Him to help me in any area of unbelief I may have regarding His promise to heal me completely from something I have had for some years, and His supernatural ability to do this. 
If I find these things done by man hard to believe, then am I letting my reasoning cause doubt regarding God's ability to heal me even though I have experienced it in the past.. The problem with the carnal mind is that it has limits to what it will accept as true, particularly as the spiritual enemy is in the carnal mind questioning constantly God's instruction to us.

In Genesis ch. 4 vs. 3 and 4 we are told that:-
'In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favour on Abel and his offering,'
Cain later killing Abel reminds me of how the preaching of the doctrines of man, represented by the fact that Cain grew things of the earth, can spiritually 'kill' those who are true believers, represented by those who keep sheep (shepherds), who are spiritually brothers of Christ as stated in Romans ch. 8 v. 29:-  'For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers'.

In the Bible the word 'Babylon' means 'Confusion, mixture.'
Chaldea means ' demons; or as robbers,' and it reminds me of the spiritual enemy robbing the church of the truth, causing the church to become confused.
 Genesis ch. 11 v. 31 and Genesis ch. 15 v. 7  say that God called Abraham, a Chaldean, out of Ur of the Chaldeans so that Abraham would follow God to the land that God had promised to him and his descendants, and that is what I believe God is calling us to do, to come out of all the spiritual confusion of the demonic spiritual enemy into the truth. 

Galatians ch. 3 vs. 6-9 read:-
 ^'So also Abraham 'believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.'
 Understand, then, that those who have faith are children of Abraham.  Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: 'All nations will be blessed through you. '  So those who rely on faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.'
 Satan can appear as an angel of light.  through our fears he can dissuade us from following the Lord's instructions. 
I had something come up in my comments section from a site I did not know saying that it was on a post called  'recovery'  (which I have not put up on my blog), it really encouraged me to continue to believe in my 'recovery'.

When I went down for breakfast a few days ago I turned a Christian programme on the television and a man was saying 'God told me to go to the doctor'.  I can honestly say that I do not see in the scriptures where we are told to do this. Why would that Word give instruction about the laying on of hands for healing, but not about the going to worldly physicians?
Even 'though Jesus was the Son of God, we are told that He learned obedience through the things He suffered (Hebrews ch. 5 v.8), and I believe this also applies to us. Even though we have become children of God through being born again of God's Spirit, we still have to learn obedience.  We are first 'babes' in Christ, feeding on the 'milk' of the Word. Then we 'mature' in Him as we are given the strong meat of that Word.

That was as far as I got in adding to the draft post.  Last night I could not sleep for thinking about why I had started writing it and how I was going to end it.  I definitely had a feeling that I was to put this post up now.  In the early hours of this morning I fell asleep and had a dream.  It was an answer to my question.
 In the dream I was given a plant that was broken in two parts at the root. I put the two parts of the root together and, holding them firmly together, put the whole plant in a pot of soil.
I knew that I was being shown that a believer and the Lord are joined as one through the 'root' of the Spirit and that I must not allow anything to separate me from the Word being enlightened to me by the Holy Spirit. 

Jesus said in John ch. 14 v. 15:-  'If you love me, keep my commands', and that is not the ten commandments, it is the Rhema Word spoken to me daily, not just being a 'hearer' of that Word but being a 'doer' of that Word to prove it true. I say to Jesus:- 'Lord, I endeavour to stay rooted in Your precious Word, continuing to trust in what You instruct me to do.  Thank You Lord for being my strength in my trials.'

How strange is this! The Fuchsia is called Salou.  I looked up the meaning of the word and one of the answers on the internet said :- 'The numerical value of Salou in Chaldean numerology is 2.' It reminds me of God calling Abraham, who was a  Chaldean to follow Him to the land that God had promised to him and his descendants, just like He is telling me to follow Him, and not to separate from Him.


As Philippians ch. 4 v. 13 states:-

I can do all things through Christ Who strengthens me.

Joseph ( Increase )

 When I think about Joseph, I think about, integrity, forgiveness and increase.  I read in Genesis ch 37, 38 and 39 that he suffered jealousy, rejection, hatred and physical assault from his brothers who, when they saw that their father loved Joseph more than he loved them, hated Joseph and could not speak peaceably about him.   Genesis chapter 37, v.8 says that they hated him for his dreams and for his words, and yet all he did was tell the dreams without any opinion of his own about what they might mean.

Instead of considering that the dreams may have come from God and have a mysterious meaning yet to be revealed, for prophets and dreamers were already accepted amongst God’s people, they became jealous of him.   Their father however, in spite of rebuking Joseph, kept the saying in mind.

Joseph was also to suffer false accusation from another man’s wife, imprisonment when innocent, and ingratitude from fellow prisoners amongst other things, and yet there appears to be no thoughts of revenge from Joseph towards the perpetrators of his sufferings.  Whether he was in his father’s house, a pit, an Egyptian’s house, a prison or a palace, his lifeline remained the same, simple trust in God.

Although Joseph was brought to be a slave in Egypt, his high ranking Egyptian master, Potiphar, saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord caused all that he did to prosper in his hands.  This in turn brought Potiphar to promote Joseph to overseer in his house over all that he had, which in turn brought blessing on the Egyptians house for Joseph’s sake.  What a wonderful example of how, if we as God’s people, serve faithfully in the world according to God’s principles wherever He might have us to be, God will not only reveal Himself to the world through us, but will also bless those who acknowledge God in us, and will bless us through them.  God is asking us only, whilst we are in the world but not of this world, to humbly proclaim Him to the world through the form of being a servant in the world while maintaining the form of His Son Jesus Christ through the presence of the Holy Spirit within us.

It is noticeable that, although Joseph’s brothers were to initiate God’s plan to place Joseph in a position where he would eventually be used to provide food for his family by throwing him into a pit, they were to play no other part in the plan.  They were even stopped from making any profit from selling him to the Ishmaelites.   It is almost as if  Joseph’s brothers were used without greatly being accused.

Joseph trusted in God and put Him first in all that he did in spite of where God placed him.  By doing this, God’s plan for the rest of Joseph’s family came into being.  

Sometimes in our lives, as with Joseph, something done by man that appears evil at the time to us is meant by God for good for the benefit of others, whether in the church or in the world.  Though we may not understand why we are sometimes placed in what appear to be difficult circumstances, if we put our trust one hundred percent in God, knowing that all things will work together for good because of our love for Him, shown through our obedience to Him in those testing circumstances, then not only will we be kept in perfect peace, but out part in the salvation of others will also be allowed to be worked out as one plants, one waters, and God adds the increase.

BLESSINGS

May all the blessings God can bring
be gathered with the hand of Spring
and strewn across your path each day
as Jesus guides you on your way
May shadows of your broken dreams
be always lightened by sunbeams
and you receive the very best
of all that God for us has blessed