Hope

The world's view of hope differs greatly from that of the word of God. Paul in his epistles speaks of patience or perseverance of hope (1 Thess 1:3 ) and hope that never fails. (Rom 5:5 Now hope does not disappoint..). The writer of Hebrews compares hope to an anchor to the soul that is steadfast and sure. Heb 6:19. There is a righteous hope and a false hope. Optimism alone cannot save us from despair.However we can have a living hope that is grounded in God.
Out of Meditations by Selwyn Hughes
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Christ, Our Life by Francis Frangipane

Christ, Our Life

For many, Christianity is simply the religion into which they were born. For others, although Jesus is truly their Savior, their relationship with Him is hardly more than a history lesson, a study of what He did in the past. For those who truly love Him, however, Christ is Savior and more: He is their very life (Col. 3:4). When Jesus is your life you cannot go on without Him.

There is a story of a man who, in search of God, came to study at the feet of an old sage. The master brought this young man to a lake and led him out into the shoulder-deep water. Putting his hands upon his pupil's head, he promptly pushed him under the water and continued to hold him there until the disciple, feeling he would surely drown, frantically repelled the old man's resistance. In shock and confusion the young man resurfaced. "What is the meaning of this?" he demanded. His teacher looked him in the eyes and said, "When you desire God as you desired air, you shall find Him."

Was this not the attitude of psalmist when he wrote, "As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for Thee, O God" (Ps 42:1)? You see, there is a place in seeking God where our heart goes beyond the limits of desire, where the actual issue becomes one of survival. I need Christ as a drowning man needs air and as a parched deer needs water. It is here, where we feel we cannot exist without seeking and finding the reality of God, that our deepest passion is fulfilled.

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Rick Joyner

Rick Joyner shares on hearing God's voice Prepared for the Times, Part 9
Week 9, 2010


Nature is another media through which God speaks to us. “Nature is God’s second book”—this is basically what the Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 1 and is also stated in Psalm 19. As we are told in Colossians 1, John 1, and other places, all things were made through Jesus and for Him, and they all speak of Him. I have come to believe that everything in nature speaks of Jesus, the only begotten Son and the love of the Father’s heart, in virtually unlimited depth. Because we are a big part of the Father’s plan for His Son, we can see our place in the message of the creation, too.

The key to unlocking the message in everything is Jesus. He is everything that the Father loves, and everything was made through and for Him. In everything that was created, the Father was looking for His Son. He’s looking for His Son in us. We are told in Ephesians 1:9-10: “He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things upon the earth.”

Since the ultimate purpose of God is for all things to be summed up in His Son, and our basic calling is to grow up in all things into Him, seeing the Son is basic to understanding everything God is doing. Jesus is the basic communication of God, which is why He is called “the Word” of God in the first chapter of John.

As there are basic keys to understanding languages, Jesus is the most basic key to understanding the heavenly language of God. If you want to understand what God is saying to you through a circumstance, look at it from the perspective of the Holy Spirit seeking to bring forth the nature of the Son in you, and it will usually become very clear. We are promised that all things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose (see Romans 8:28). The ultimate good that could come is for us to see His glory and be changed into His same image—start looking for Him in everything.

I love to read about the great discoveries in physics and astronomy because Psalm 19 is true—the heavens do declare His glory! As someone once said, the worst problem for an atheist is to see a glorious sunset and not have anyone to thank. How can we see anything of the glory of creation and not marvel at and worship the Creator?
Elizabeth Barrett Browning once said, “Earth is crammed with heaven, and every common bush afire with God; but only he who sees takes off his shoes—the rest sit round it and pluck blackberries.” This is why we want to see, not just with our natural eyes, but with our spiritual eyes too. This is what the Apostle Paul prayed for in Ephesians 1, that the “eyes of our hearts would be opened.”

Newton was called the “father of modern physics,” and He was a passionate Christian who was likewise seeking to discern Christ in the creation. Newton also believed in what is now called The Bible Code, he and spent years of his life searching for it. The Bible Code is in fact there, but is far too intricate to have been discovered without the help of a computer, which is because God wanted it saved until the end of the age. Even so, whether you believe if The Bible Code is real or not isn’t the point. Newton saw such symmetry and mathematical precision in creation that he simply believed that it must also exist in The Bible in layer upon layer of depth in meaning and purpose. This is because those of his time were just beginning to discover through their relatively crude microscopes that there were far more building blocks to the creation than they had ever perceived before. It’s hard to tell for sure, but Newton could have been “seeing through a glass darkly” (see I Corinthians 13:12), such things as genes and DNA.

Newton’s ideas about The Bible Code were not entirely from observing the creation, but were also from some Rabbi friends who had believed in The Bible Code for generations. The Bible Code is not needed for faith by one who has the Holy Spirit, but its existence is a testimony of how deep and intricate God’s communication with His people is, as well as how awesome the order is that He has placed in all things. There may seem like many random events and situations in nature, but they are only found in that which is man’s domain. In the rest of the creation, an order and purpose is deeper, higher, further, and broader than our small minds can fully perceive.

Einstein also saw a profound common link in all of creation he called “the Reason that manifests itself in nature.” This Reason is Christ through Whom and for Whom all things are created. This is why all things are held together by the Word (Christ) of His power. All things are not God as the pantheists believe, but He is actually in all things and holds the universe together. As the Apostle Paul put it in his interesting discourse on Mars Hill, “In Him we live and move and have our being” (see Acts 17:28).

In Colossians 1:27, we are told that it is “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Sometimes it is easier to see the Lord in nature than it is to see Him in us. Remember, we are the temple! He therefore speaks to us from within, and we need to recognize His voice when He does. He also speaks to us through His people, and we need to discern His voice when He does. Again, this is a devotion to not just hear the words of the Lord, but to hear the Word, Himself. As we come to know Him, we will come to know His voice and recognize Him whenever, however, and through whomever He chooses to speak to us. Read more!

What headlines would you like to see in 2010

This year, why not indulge instead in thinking up the news headlines that you would most like to see in 2010. Here are a few wild possibilities to get your creative juices flowing:. - Bafana Bafana win World Cup; trophy stolen and recovered.
- Presidential song "Bring me my governance framework" goes Platinum.
- 5,000 police officers redeployed to industry due to plummeting crime figures.
- CEO takes self-imposed bonus cut and announces job creation initiative.
- Malema pursues intensive character development programme.
- Rand reaches parity with dollar (US$, not Zim$).
- Dept of Home Affairs wins coveted incorruptibility award.
- Government minister selects VW Golf as ministerial vehicle.
- Great line-up of programmes on SABC tonight.
- Tougher matric paper, better results.
- 200,000 men join march against woman & child abuse.
- Racially diverse "Ubuntu communities" spring up nationwide.
- Churches connect biblical faithfulness and cultural relevance.



Many thanks to TGIF letter
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2010 Hallelejah

Be exalted Oh Lord above the Heavens; let your glory be over all the earth. Psalm 57v5.
The mighty One, God, the Lord, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to the place where it sets. Psalm 50v1.
You have set your glory above the heavens....When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers...O Lord ,our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth. Ps 8.
The heavens praise your wonders,O Lord,your faithfulness too in the assembly of the holy ones. Ps 89

Sunset on last day of December 2010

O Lord my God you are very great; you are clothed the splendor and majesty. He wraps himself in light as with a garment; he stretches out the heavens like a tent..the moon marks off the seasons and the sun knows when to go down...Praise the Lord oh my soul.Ps 104

Beautiful moonrise over African Savannah within minutes of sunset.

On 31st December 2009 deep in the beautiful African bushveld I watched the sun sink slowly behind the acasia trees and watched the magnificant African moon rise at the same time. It was an awesome sight and one I will never forget as within the depth of my being rose praise to our God the creator.
May 2010 be one where you also enjoy the majesty of God's creation.
Ruth. Read more!

Reconciliation

December 16th in our country. To many in South Africa, Dec 16th is a day to remember their forefather's promise to keep this day holy. To others it is a day to relax and spend with family.
16 December in South Africa is a public holiday because of a major battle in our history. This year the Nobel Peace prize was awarded to Barack Obama.What he had to say in his acceptance speech about the issues around war and peace is worth considering.
PRESIDENT OBAMA TALKS WAR, PEACE - President Barack Obama evoked the concept of the ''just war'' on Thursday when he accepted his Nobel peace prize, nine days after sending 30000 more US troops into battle in Afghanistan. He promised to use the prize to "reach for the world that ought to be''. President Obama became the first sitting US president in 90 years, and the third ever, to win the prize - some say prematurely. He and his wife, Michelle, whirled through a day filled with Nobel pomp and ceremony. Mr Obama delivered a Nobel acceptance speech that he saw as a treatise on war's use and prevention. "I face the world as it is," he said, refusing to renounce war for his nation or under his leadership, saying that he is obliged to protect and defend the US. "A non-violent movement could not have halted Hitler's armies. Negotiations cannot convince al-Qaeda's leaders to lay down their arms," Mr Obama said. "To say that force is sometimes necessary is not a call to cynicism, it is a recognition of history." The President specified the circumstances in which war is justified: in self-defence, to come to the aid of an invaded nation, or on humanitarian grounds, such as when civilians are slaughtered by their own government, or when civil war threatens to engulf an entire region. "The belief that peace is desirable is rarely enough to achieve it." He also spoke bluntly of the cost of war, saying of the Afghanistan build-up he has just ordered that "some will kill, some will be killed". "No matter how justified, war promises human tragedy.'' Mr Obama emphasised the importance of alternatives to violence, such as diplomacy and tough sanctions, to confront nations such as Iran or North Korea, which defy international demands to halt their nuclear programmes, or those such as Sudan, Congo or Burma, which brutalise their citizens. The US President was in Oslo for only 24 hours and missed the traditional second day of festivities, including a banquet. This miffed some in Norway, but reflects a White House that sees little value in extra pictures of the President, while his poll numbers drop at home, taking an overseas victory lap while thousands of US troops prepare to go to war and millions of Americans remain jobless. In awarding the prize to Mr Obama, the Nobel panel cited his call for a world free of nuclear weapons, for a more engaged US role in combating global warming, for his support of the UN and Multilateral Diplomacy, and for capturing the attention of the world and giving people "hope''. But the Nobel committee made its announcement in October when he was not even nine months on the job, recognising his aspirations more than his achievements. "I am at the beginning, and not the end, of my labours on the world stage," Mr Obama said. "Compared to some of the giants of history who have received this prize, my accomplishments are slight."

Psalm 20:7 “Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; But we will remember the name of the Lord our God.”

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What precious metal do we read about in Malachi? Malachi 3:3 says:
'He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver.'

This verse puzzled some women in a Bible study and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God. One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible Study.
That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining Silver.
As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities
The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot; then she thought again about the verse that says: 'He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver.' She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined.
The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed..
The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, 'How do you know when the silver is fully refined?'
He smiled at her and answered, 'Oh, that's easy -- when I see my image in it.'
If today you are feeling the heat of the fire , remember that God has his eye on you and will keep watching you until He sees His image in you.
Submitted by Pastor Robert

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