Teach us to pray

One of the disciples ask jesus to teach them how to pray, so Jesus taught them The Lord pray..

Father, may your name be kept holy and your kingdom come. Give us every day bread for our needs. May we have forgiveness for our sins, as we make free all those who are in debt to us. And let us not be put to the test.

This was a pretty good general pray and is still a great basis for all our praying today.

But then Jesus explained about prayer saying that if they went to a friends house late at nigh and asked to borrow some bread but the friend shouted "go away I'm in bed" but you kept knocking on the for and asking eventually because of your persistence he will get up and give you all the bread he has.

If you child asks for fish for dinner, do you give him a snake? No because you know how to give good gifts to your kids.

How much more then will god give to us if we keep asking. This is explaining that when we ask and ask again in prayer god will answer for we have shown faith.

"Even though"

In this Lowe and hardest time of my life it's starting to sometimes feel that God is moving me forward only to knock me down.

The weight on my shoulders seems to slowly lift only to then get give a whole new bigger weight to carry.

Talking with a friend tonigh she told me about a hard time in her life she told me how at the hardest time she read Psalm 23. You know the one, "the lords my shepherd"

She told me how two words stood out to her in verse 4.

"Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me, your rod and your staff they comfort me".
(New International Translation)

She pointed out it says "Even Though". It doesn't say everything will be trouble free and all hunkidory, it say EVEN THOUGH.

Even though we will feel pain, even though people will hurt us, even though we will lose loved ones god will guild us and be there with us. Just like a shepherd with his sheep.

Psalms 23 is one of the most well know, and there's 150 of them. Why don't you read it yourself. See what it says on verses 5 and 6 and find the faith that good will come.

Which WAy?

Theres a story in the bible about a talking donkey.... strange I know but hey why not after all there was also a talking bush. 

The Donkey belonged to a guys called Balaam and while on the way to somewhere God dint want him to go the donkey spoke to him. Read about it in Numbers 22: 28.

Even Jonah tried to run from a place that God wanted him to go. Got swallowed by a ''big fish'' that spat him back on the beach where god was trying to send him. Read it in Jonah 1: 1.

Ever get that feeling you should be doing something different. Maybe life just isn't what you think it should be, or feel it should be taking a different direction. Well when we stop and think about what God wants, and even ask him what he wants, life can take a turn in a better direction.

If your hearing one thing from God and another from people around you, which one is right?  and how can we be sure its actually God and not ourselves telling us the way forward.

Im a great believer in Listening and learning (something I've never been good at in the past) If your going to pray and speak to god, we assume he is listening. So its only right to listen to him. His answers may not be always easy to hear, and his will may not always be easy to swallow. But he does listen and he does answer.

OH its so hard doing the right thing. Does god speak through others? does he talk directly at you? Does he stick a big sign up for you to see on you way to work saying ''THIS WAY''.

Well I guess all of these are possible its just knowing which to look for I guess. So many things are giving me so many directions It really hard to go in any direction/ But then maybe that's what he wants ''WHO KNOW?''

I guess if we choose the wrong direction and trust in him, like Balaam and Jonah he will direct us back or if not back he will keep us on the right road as long as we listen.

 

News Nov 2012 - Don't Panic!!! Don't Panic!!!

The sad new last week of the death of Clive Dunn (AKA Corporal Jack Jones) was one of those times that you cant help but smile when you remember the work of Clive Dunn.  Best known for his part in the TV show Dads Army Jack Jones could often be heard shouting ''Don't Panic!'' while running around like a headless chicken as everyone around him stayed calm.

Don't worry. this isn't a tribute to Clive Dunn but I did get me wondering what reaction people would have when I die. And trying not to be morbid or anything but just a thought of how important are others to us.and what felling would we be leaving behind.

Like my friend Mark Versey, who left us all with such a legacy from how he lived for Christ, Like Clive Dunn, who's name when you hear it just seems to bring a smile to your face, some people will leave a mark in your life by how they lived theirs and what they did with theirs.

Maybe sometimes we have to look at our lives and ask questions like, How will we be remembered? are we going to leave a legacy of any worth?

With other new in the last few weeks The BBC is under pressure as allegations started to emerge of one of their much loved past presenters may well have be a peadofile and left with children on a regular basis.

Now then, the legacy left by this man was one of greatness, TV work, Radio Work and a massive amount of work for charity and even a knighthood left a memories of respect and maybe even inspirational. Only he left with a few stones unturned and over night seemed to have gone from a respected (if not a little eccentric) to a sad old crazy man that (it is reported) has had his Head stone removed be the family.

What will you be remembered for? is it something you have done or is it something your going to do?

LEARN

I may have Jumped the gun with the blog about The Rapture. It seems there could be a slight clash of Opinions in the Bible on this subject.

I guess its another learning situations for me, and I may have looked at some information that was... I wouldn't say wrong... maybe... not the whole truth.

when I got home that night I started thinking about how scary the Rapture thing was. And seeming I was ready to got to heaven then what did I need to do?

It all seemed like something from a horror movie that I didnt want to be a part of so I needed to look into it all a bit more. To think that only a small part of the church was ready for heaven I wondered how many of my church and friends where ready.

It says so many other things in the bible ''He that believes in the lord shall never die but have eternal life'' however I think I've worked out that its more than just believing in God, its living with God that makes the difference.

Please don't think The Rapture is a threatening ''if you don't go to church your doomed'' type of thing, its not. and I believe the God I serve just wants us to put all our trust in him and do the best we can to keep him at the center of our lives and to be the best we can be.

I guess what Ive learned from this is that we need to check stuff out for ourselves, our ministers, people on TV and the internet can say what ever they like and different people will have different views on different subjects. So do we trust those people more than God?

We need to check it out. just like I did. I had something in my mind telling me what I learned just didn't weigh up something telling me to seek the truth for myself. I'm not sure I'm any clearer than when I started looking at the subject, but what I can say is I'm not in such a panic about getting ready because if I took the teaching I had on Friday as 100% true then I don't think ill ever be ready.

I just wanted to share this story too.

Earlier on in the year when most of this stuff was new to me I sat and watch THE GOD CHANEL. Yes Yes I know it seems a little sad. Anyway there was an american on saying how god reformed his life when he had no money.

He said how he got $500 and then within a day he had given that $500 to the church and to the poor people (he said this was an order from god.He said how he became rich and made his money back a hundred times over.

Suddenly after a great and inspiring story from the flamboyant American guy the program changed it to what I can only describe as a Telefon (you know the kind of thing) The where asking people too ''SOW SEEDS'' and promising great wealth to those who did.

Now considering my new faith and and the fact I was struggling with all aspects of my life at the time there was a point I reached for my wallet, but it just didnt seem right to give to this TV program.

Deciding not to give $500 to this ''Seed Sowing Church'' I looked into it and when reading and asking others about it I realised I had done the right thing by not giving.. Had God stopped me from throwing away $500 0r am I not as gullible  as I thought

Thje bible says ''be aware of false profits'' I think the church on God TV where making fulse profits in more ways than one, So If you heard something dont just assume its correct.... look it up and learn more..

I need to start Getting ready.

Out of a moment of learning I suddenly had a moment of reality. this reality came as I started to look at (what the bible calls) THE RAPTURE. Now as far as I can tell this is when Jesus returns to earth and takes the people to heaven that have been ''born again''........ But does he?

Luke 14 v16-26 tells the Parable of the banquet. This is where a rich guy invites three mates to have dinner. All three turn down the offer. The first guys says ''I have just brought a new field and need to go see it''. The 2nd guys says "I've just ordered some new cows and need to collect them'' and the third says ''I Just got married so cant come''

This Man Then tells his survant to go into the streets and invite the poor and hungry people to come and feast on the food, He then say ''The Invited ones that had more important stuff to do will not have any of this banquet''

Looking at some of the stuff about ''The Rapture'' has brought the Parable of the Banquet into context. The three people that had more important things to do did not share the feast. they choose to do other things in life (and ok taken the situation of the story they may have had a good reason) but the like all parable there was a point to this parrable that Jesus told.

To enter the kingdom of heaven is not easy and looking at some of the reasons its not easy also could mean many ''Christians'' will not go with the father to heaven, Including me.Scary hey, but Im not trying to scare you. I looked at stuff it said we should be free from to enter heaven. Addictions, Lust and all kind of worldly piossons. Holding grudges not forgiving, not tithing, not sharing the the bible and your faith, the list goes on.

So I came to the conclusion that I (and maybe many others) need to do more to earn our place in heaven because if we are left behind after the rapture the world will be a very different place (for the worse) and one that will lack moral. Every man for himself will be the way of survival, Brother will turn against Brother, Children will turn against Parents. OK Ill stop that now as Im in danger of being accused of being MAD.

The fact of the mater is being a beliver in god will not get you into heaven. It needs more work than just believing, and shockingly Im not yet ready ARE YOU?

Transformation

"You must be born again"

It says that in the bible. Of course it's referring to becoming a Christian, and is saying to have life in all it fullness and eternal life your must accept Jesus into your life.

Some people have said to me that they just don't get what difference it makes, so I thought I'd try and explain it in this blog.

At work we have this old run down garden/ courtyard. And over the years it has become over grown and used as a bit of a dumping ground.

It's not a bad size garden and I guess at some point it served a purpose for some one. But to be honest it had become a bit of an eye sore for people that visited.

So I decided the time had come to re-vamp it. The weeds had to go. The shingle had the be moved and the rubbish disposed of.

We then thought it would be a great idea if not only the garden could be used by the flat upstairs but also as a show area for the artificial grass that we had started to supply.

We set to work and the grass was laid then we painted the breeze block wall and although not complete the work that we have done has made a massive difference.

Sometime things need to change to make for a better future. We have to get rid of some of the stuff that is just plane ugly and replace it with stuff that makes us happier, makes others happier.

Stripe away the rubbish, the weeds and the unsightly shingle and simply start over with cleaner and new foundations.

Yes it could get more messy than when you started. And yes it's gonna take a bit of work. But it will start to take shape and although its always gonna be "work in progress" you'll find it a better to live with, you'll see things more clearer, and people will enjoy the new transformation.

Vineyard decline.

A company in France had been making wine for generations. Since the very beginning the family that ran the vineyard had used the same technique and used the same machinery to make and store the wine.

One of the processes in the wine making was the use a large wooden tank to store the wine for a certain period before being bottled.

Now after 100 years the new generation decided it was time for an update. And brought in new equipment to speed up the process and make more wine and more money.

The large wooden tank was replaced with an even larger stainless steel one. This allowed the family to pick more grapes and store more wine and fill more bottles.

What happened was over a couple of years they notice at first an increase of profits but that soon started to decrease until the profits where down and sales started to drop.

What they found was the reason behind the down turn in sales was not the financial climate, but the fact the quality of the wine had dropped. And although making more wine the sales had fallen and they where not getting close to the price per bottle as they used too.

They also seemed to have a lot of unsold stock sitting around and that they could not sell unless they sold it at a loss.

The fact was they now seemed to be too efficient and making to much wine. And it was decided the quality of the wine was in the taste, and the wine being stored in the new steel tank didn't have the same quality bouquet as the wine that used to come from the old wooden one.

If we try and ignore what's important in our lives, we can sometimes find that the quality of our lives and mind can stay to fall.

We can even try and force a better life by replacing it with stuff that just leaves a bad taste. We can even try and stop change which can sometimes prevent us from moving forward.

Try and step back and see what things in your life are important and try and make change that can help improve your life and the people around you.

Helicopter

If for some strange reason you read all my blogs you may remember when I blogged about the guy on a desert island who turned down being rescued by a helicopter as he said that it wasn't needed as god would save him.

He died and went to heaven and when he questioned god as to why he did save him god said "we'll I sent a helicopter"

This was all about listening to god. And that sometimes we have to see things from a different perspective.

Off course it's important to pray. But it can be just as important to listen. And I've been listening, but have I been hearing?

I'm not sure what god has up his sleeve for my life, but I know what I'm hearing and I pray that it's right.

As long as I seek gods will then I'm sure god will provide. And if I've missed that helicopter, then I know he will send another.

Get up again.

Today I once again fined my self with lots of worries on my mind and lots of things just dragging me down. I guess on these bad days we just have to try and dig in and find a way to keep moving forward.

Some sayings spring to mind and the first is ''its not the winning but the taking part''. Now Id like to agree with that but as a christian I would like to add that its also about doing everything you can to finish the race.

Another thing I heard is ''Failure is not falling down, its refusing to get up again''. and also ''Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass, but learning to dance in the rain''.

So what do these sayings all mean. Well, they are all about inspiration and there are many other quotes to help inspire you through troubled times.

If we are running a race and we start to fall behind. If we have fallen and don't get up to finish then we may be looking at failure.

It's not about winning the race, it's not about how you run the race. Sometime just staying in the race is a success.

You may well have to cruel part of the race. You may have to take some steps backward to get back on course, but as long as you start the race, stay in the race and finish the race then success not failure will be won.

Reflect

A mate of mine put on his face book status... ''Did you shine today?'' Now me being me said ''NO. I don't have a light to shine right now'' his answer back was ''its about reflecting the light'' ah GOT IT.

Now Im not sure if I should mention whoi it was that Im talking about, but Im one for breaking rules so I tell you it was Simon Scott a guy from my church and Trombone playing genius.

Im Guessing this was in referance to a sermon he did on Sunday while the Felixstowe band where visiting another Salvation Army up north. I wasn't there so cant be sure but that simple comment back from Simon kind of stuck in my mind.

Now if I'm right then on the upside I got the message without needing to sit in the service to get a bad back. and I was listening to another sermon which was just as good.

Reflect the light... You know what, thats a pretty good skill to have and one that im gonna try and do.

Sometimes you dont have a light to shine, or its so dull it doesn't shine much anyway. Its like its gone out. Its like a candle in a breeze blown out and needs to be lite again.

Even with no light to shine a survivor can be seen from miles around by using a mirror or a bit of glass from a watch or pair of glasses.

We may not have the energy to shine a light or sometimes our light needs re-lighting put we can Reflect Gods light through our actions and know that he will re-light our flame once more. Hey and you know what... maybe if you can reflect light when your light all but out. You may well find that your light glows brighter.

Even Better...... You ever seen a prysum? pyrimid shaped glass, they bend and split light, so when light hits it it reflects the light in a different direction in a different way. increasing the light thats pointed to them into different colors.

Looking at life differently

Serenity

I have said it before and Ill say it again. ''We Never stop Learning'' and in fact learning is what helps us to grow and move forward.

I was told yesterday it was about time I blogged again. The truth is I haven't really felt like blogging for over a week. I have been really struggling with my faith in God and been in a really dark place.

Remember Jesus on the cross, he called out ''My father, why have you forsaken me''. The thing was that God hadnt forsaken Jesus or left him to die on a cross, he had given him the strength to endure the crosifixtion and then raised him from the dead.

Once again its about faith and believing in god and his promise. finding the faith to believe in God is so hard (espetally when others try and knock you down) even Jesus when hanging on the cross started to lose faith.

I guess im hanging on that cross at the moment, suffering the hurt and trying to understand why I'm where I am. Why people in my life have hurt me and why God seems too have stopped caring. Maybe when I call and hear him Im listening to the wrong voice. I guess all I can do in trust and dig in and have the faith that god will keep his promise to me.

This morning a good friend of mine share a prayer with me called ''Serenity''. To be honest Im not really even sure Ive ever heard that word before but the prayer was one of those simple and powerful ones that has left its mark on me today.....

The first time I read it today I wondered if it was a bit of a ''get out'' prayer, one of those very general prays that is the answer for everything. But reading it again I realised that I cant change any situation unless I do it with god. I wont find courage without god to do whats right and god will give me the wisdom to know whats right.

SERENITY....? I can only guess it means peace or grace. or and calmer state of mind?.... Well I pray this prayer and try and hold on to Gods word, He will light my path and deliver the best..

Sharing.

Within the church you'll always get people that feel like a bit of a spare part. They just don't seem to see themselves as any use.

This kind of thought I guess is partly because people set themselves a limit and can form a barrier.

The fact is that God sets no limits, and doesn't put up barriers. And how ever long we have been Christians for makes no difference to what we can do.

So as Christians weather old or new we have the access to the same strengths. This means that god has given us the power to over come all.

We all have an ability to play a part within gods church and to minister and to share gods word. These skills can be put into 3 basic category's... Teaching, Preaching and Sharing.

Teaching – Some people can read the bible and go through it and explain what it all means. They can quote references of the top of their head and answer questions and Explain what bible stuff means.

Preaching – Some people can Give out the message not by doing what teaching does and feeding your mind, but by hitting your heart. They have an ability to encourage and inspire.

Sharing – This is telling others what Jesus has done for you. It can be just as powerful as the other 2 (preaching and Teaching) and quite often far more powerful. (in the bible this is Testimony)

These different talents play an important role in many walks of life, not just the church. and as a christian I find I'm challenged by others to try and prove God exists. But you know what, I don't need to prove or teach people about God or preach at them every time they I see them.

God selected me as a disciple, god gave me a place in heaven, Jesus has given me the power equal to his, in fact I don't need to prove or teach, what I do have a obligation to do is share, share my experiences, share my thoughts and share my talents.

We may not feel that we have a talent we can use, we may feel like a spare part but I believe every christian has the gift of sharing.

 

 

My favorite joke ever......

This Alsatian  dog goes into the local Job Centre looking for a job. He walks up to the lady at the desk and says ''Hi, I'm looking for work''. Surprised the lady (almost falling of her chair) said '' Wow your a dog... and you talk''. ''Yes Yes'' Says the Alsatian, ''Im a talking dog looking for work''.

The ladie tells the dog to wait as she may just have the perfect job for the talking Alsatian. Then a few minuets late the lady comes back and tells the dog to be at Chipperfield Circus at 9am the following day.

Happy, the dog thanks the ladie and starts to walk out of the Job Centre then suddenly turns back. ''Just one thing'' the dog says to the lady....... ''what do Chipperfield circus want a brick layer for''.

Now your either laughing with me, or your sat in silence not getting the Joke. Either way forget the joke. The Job Centre staff member had seen the Talking dog and came up with her own ideal job him.

With no questions or thought she thought she new what was the best line of work for the Alsatian, and straight away called the Circus to tell them of this amazing find.

It so easy to make our minds up about people before we even get to know them. Its also easy to think we know what is best for someone else. But to be honest, its acts like this that make people the way they are.

Ive been exercising my brain in recent weeks to try and look through the exterior of people and try and see the good inside. Its an amazing skill to have but sadly I don't have that natural skill and very often look at what I see as the whole story. I also sometimes think I know what people need and sometimes think to myself a good kick up the back side would be an answer. 

But trying to look at people differently and listening to what people say, I have not only found I can learn from others, Ive also seen many in a completely different way.

Challenge.... Try and look at someone differently, It could be someone you know well or someone famous, try and see the good things about them and then try and see the world through their eyes. Also try and look at them through Gods eyes and think about how Jesus sees that person.

The Firework.

As I walked with my 3 and 7 year old boys across the playground yesterday on the way to school we found a used firework that had landed there over the weekend.

What seemed to me as a soggy old firework, dirty and useless, to 3 year old Edward and 7 year old Ben it took on a whole new vision. ''we could launch a playmobil man into space'' Ben said. Edward then thought he would like to visit the moon. Ben worked out that Edward could hold on tightly to it as it was launch, but Daddy would have to light it as that a dangerous job.

After school the excitement of visiting space was still on the boys minds and we agreed to go and but a small pack of rockets to let of in the garden. The boys watched on in ore as each rocket was lite, launched and then exploded in the sky.

The Firework that we had found in the playground that day, seemed useless, no good for anything but the bin. It seemed to have had its day and having done what it was intended to do had landed in our path and was no use to anyone.

Then with a bit of clever thinking by two little boys had become a whole new adventure, a trip to the moon. New life seemed to have been put in to the dead firework and resulted in a mini firework extravaganza in our garden.

We can feel that our life has no use, and we can seem empty and have no future. Maybe we feel that we have been like that firework, once ready to launch and hit the heights where we have exploded into a bright display of light. Then come back down to earth with a bump, not good for anything anymore and only good to lay a rot away in a cold wet puddle.

But maybe that not where the story ends, and we can once again have new life (sometimes in a different way) and in the right hands with the right mind we can once again become full of life ready to launch to new heights once more.

End of and era at Factory

Here in Felixstowe we have in the past months had one of the large town employees make people redundant. The Factory in question is ITRON, at least i thing that's what they call it these days as its started life as SANGAMO WESTERN and also SCHLUMBURGER (i think that's spelt correctly) and ACTARUS.

Now the factory has been a big part of the town for many many years and many family's have had strong ties with it. My family for one had a strong history with the factory as My Dad, Brother, uncle and myself all worked there for a while.

It had a family atmosphere and the people people that worked there would agree that it was a place they loved to hate. Work was sometimes monotonous but the there was never a dull moment and always a friendly atmosphere.

I remember going to Factory Children's Parties as a boy and watching magicians and meeting father Christmas and getting a toy. Also Staff nights out would be a somewhat lively affair. There are many names that spring to mind when I think of the factory and everyone that worked there will have there own special memory's and story's of factory life.

It an end of an era. and I'm guessing some people may not know what the future will bring. Some have found new work but others are finding it hard to get a job. Some people remain in the factory for a while longer and I can only imagine how quiet it is in the areas that where once full of machine no noice and people working.




God gives hope in all situations and can change situations in a way we cant ever imagine. This may not come in the form of some millionaire buying the factory and re employing staff. it may not even come in the form of new work that pays double before, but I do know it will come in a great form and those people will look back a factory days and fondly remember but also be in a better place.

Facebook App.

I have this thing on Facebook that is called message from god. It just one of those silly apps that someone made up to try and get people to add.

 

This application is called Message from God. Its a bit like a daily bible Reading or study. I never really bother with it and to be honest its one of those things that seem a great idea at first and after the first day or two Id forgotten about it. But today it came up on my facebook page and so I decided to read what it said

 

It said.......

 

On this day of your life, Gareth, we believe God wants you to know ... that it's time you let go.

Yes, of course, you want to control so everything happens in just the way you want it. But at the end of the day, we control nothing, - it's all in God's hands, - has always been, and will always be. So, do what you can, and then let go, and let God handle the rest.

 

Ive been suffering with stuff like panic attacks and depression, I find it hard to do anything in the evenings and many evening go to bed at 5.30pm.

 

I guess maybe I am trying to control what I do and what I see. Sometimes I have to stay in the house as I feel safe there. Although I fully trust in God maybe I have to let go of those things I'm trying to control and Let God control them.

 

Knowing God has a much better plan for me then I could ever imagine, I guess i have to know its all in Gods hands and I can only do what I can and let God handle the rest. He is the Potter we are the clay.

 

 

 

ALPHA and OMEGA

The Bible tells us that God is Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and End. He is the same today as yesterday and will be the same tomorrow. What does it all really mean?

OK. Those of you who are parents will know that felling of bringing a baby home for the first time. The love you have for the child can at times be over whelming and you want the baby to have the best of everything.

As the child grows up and starts school your love for the child is still as strong as those first few hours and you still want the best for them. As the years go by you watch the child develop different characteristics and interests. You see them form relationships with others. At time they make you laugh, sometimes cry and even make you angry, but that Love and your Hope for them never fails.

God if our father, and way beyond when we where born he wanted the best for us. he even had a plan for us. Tat love never changes and even today he still wants us to have everything he planned.

It up to us to Trust in him and ask him to lead us in his plans. When we here people say... What good has God done for me? I have to wonder and ask myself the same question. But I guess unless we ask God to Lead us and let him carry out his plans we wont ever know.

I don't know what That plan is for me. I can only guess and pray about it. But I know The plan will be Gods best just as he planned in the beginning and I trust him to Work on it today and tomorrow and for many years to come.

 

all things are possible

After another week of no blogging I decided it was time to put prayer into action and look to be inspired again.

Last night was that evening that some people say evil spirits come out to play and a dark force is among us. Well I'm not sure last night was any different to any others and where I live the only dark force was a bunch of kids dressed an Zombies and carrying bags of sweets.

Christians know that there is a Spirit realm in which the devil works. Now It wasn't something I really knew about until I read the book on Mission Asia that this Spirit realm became real to me.

Don't worry I haven't started talking to dead people or ghost hunting. (my interest in ghosts is souly historic interest - ill blog about it soon)

But don't panic, the evil spirits do exist and the spirit realm is very real but we have a ''not so secret weapon'' because at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow. No evil or devil or bad spirit can touch us or come anywhere near us as when you order in the name of Jesus you can over come all.

So what bad stuff is going on in your life right now. I know I have plenty. But I truly believe in my heart that when the bible says Trust in the Lord with all your heart, its not just words its actions. Remember God has Plans for Good, he want the best and when we trust in Jesus all things are possible.