Winners or losers

So people keep asking when I will start blogging again. Truth is since the pandemic I’ve not found a church to settle in. 

I guess being a single guy who’s kids have their own opinions on going to church I personally find it hard. 

One thing I do know is that God hasn’t left me and I still maintain a strong faith, and off course I know the importance of being part of a church and having Christian freinds and family around. 

This week I was encouraged to try and re look at my blog and remember why I started it. At first it was to take my mind of the world around me during a time of depression. Then I realised people where reading it and “getting it” and it became more about bring a message in my own words that people seemed to understand even if spelling and grammar wasn’t perfect.

So after a long break I’m attempting to restart this blog and hope to include more features including vlogs and interview with other Christian’s. Also I’d like to look around my local community to look how churches in my area differ from each other and how they impact the local community

So it’s maybe apt that this blog is being written on the Saturday before wit Sunday. Wit sunday being the day the Christian church first Christian and the Holy Spirit comming down from heaven. 

Reports of high winds comming though the windows of where they would worship together and Tongues of fire landing on each of their heads. Going out into the streets and speaking in tongue to the people outside and them understanding. This is the edsact same experience I had when I finally got the whole Christian thing. (I hope to do a video on that) 

That day, God sent his spirit down to live among us. 40 day I think it was after Jesus had reterned to heaven after he conquered the grave and resurrected. A sigh that we have a life after earth if we want to choose his way. And that same Holy Spirit is in every Christian that sincerely invites him in to there lives. 

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. Matthew 7:7

And even though (hands up) I’ve not been going to a church every week I have kept my faith knowing the holly spirit is guiding my life like he always has done through my parents and family and freind and now he lives in me!

Guiding light

Just outside where I live is the suburb of Walton. Walton was at one time The main town in the area. Just at Walton high Street was the road now called Maidstone Road and turns into grange road at the railway bridge That continues to Pewitt hill. At the bottom of Pewitt hill was the shore. 

The Walton was built at a point or equal distance from the two local rivers and seafront. The road to Pewitt HillWould have been the main road for fisherman to bring up the catch for sell. 

As Walton grew so did the need for other Goods from around England and other countries. The shore at the bottom of peewit Hill would have been busy with goods coming in and out.

The dockland now at felixstowe Are the biggest in the country but that's not the Point of this blog.

At the bottom of Pewitt Hill now is a roundabout that lead through the customs checks into the Port along with a Mcdonalds, offices, a supermarket and other buildings

Pewitt Hill Is still busy with people walking or cycling to and from work at the docs. It's an unmade road very uneven and un suitable for vehicles put i can still imagine horse and carts going up and down heading to and from walton. 

At the top are houses that would gave been there in those days. One noticeably an old brothel intising the sailors to take rest for the night. Another of these houses had an important roll to play. 

The nearest light house was 10 or more miles away and there had to be something to guide the boats in to walton and this house that is still there today was effectively the light house. 

Each night the keeper of this house would light a candle and using a pulley system would lift the candle up into a glass box at the too if a false chimney. 

It was said to have been seen for 3 to 4 miles out to see and although the jetty was well lit it was some times to low to be seen in rough waters and fog. 

Yhis light became a life line to many as they focused on light in the sky to guide them close enough to safely see the boats in close enough to see the jetty where they could rest once the cargo had been taken of. 

Life can be tough. It can throw us some had blows at times. At times we cant see the end of our bad situations and, well some Give up and decide turning back is the better way. 

The bible is full of stories of people want to give in.They dont feel worthy or feel strong enough to get to that Jetty. 

Focus on that light, focus in Jesus and his promise to you, so he can lead you safely to shore and all he has promised.

Maybe someone near you id struggling trying to find their way in the darkness. Well why not be a light for them too. 

Bear Grylls

Testing The Paths

So people keep telling me to start blogging again. and after a couple of messages from strangers that read the blogs Ive decoded to try and start blogging again.

trouble with blogging is finding the inspiration to turn it into a blog, even then when i try and start I cant find the words to start the blog (like now).

But in the past I have found if I start typeing then some hom the blog starts to take shape and many times leads to a whole different place to what you thought when I set out.

when I started blogging I was trying to battle with depetion, it was a way to clear my mind and fill it with other things rather than dark thoughts. some of the blogs where well recieved some not so much, all filled with spelling mistakes and bad grammer (like this one)

As I look back on those blogs I find reading them now a reminder and good self advice, it was never meant to be read by others but a personal journey. but it soon came apparent people liked reading and sometimes started discussions I didn't expect.

At the end of 2017 I said i wanted to follow Gods paths, or at least do what I could do to continue exploring his purpose for me. Sadly since then Ive not really done much about it, so this maybe the start of walking forward and building on something that both gives me something to work on and also hopefully gets people thinking and talking.

we all sometime struggle to find a purpose, never really understand why so many around us seem to play an important role while we wouldn't be missed if we was around. but the bible tells us we all have a role to play in the church family. the bile explains it by calling it the body of Christ, explaining how it has many parts tat all work independently yet in unison to achieve the same Goals.

Into the begining

A couple of stories I saw this week got methinking. The first was of a lady that was brought up in America to white parents, only to discover her mothers parents where African American and mix race. This meant her mum who looked white was in fact coloured (which she found it stated on her birth certificate).

She looked back and said about the little clues her mum had given them. Like always powering her face which a light powder, never going out in the sun, and never wanting to talk about her past. 

The second story was of two ladies.adopted at 5 months old now in their 40s both discover they where twins.

The record showed how one was adopted a taken away two days before the other. Which not only highlighted the question why where they adopted but also how different it would have been if the other one was taken first. 

In both stories the people where left with a lot of what ifs. And maybe realising they are not the people they had thought. And suddenly realised they had a different past, different history to what they knew. 

I used to have a card on my mirror in the bathroom that read 

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.”

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭43:18-19‬ ‭NIV‬‬

This was God talking to the people about how they can trust him. And that the past has been and he had lead them to a new life. He was giving the people new freedom. A new start. He was doing new things and they need not worrie about the life they lived before or the things they had done. 

Later we understand that what God told those people many years before, Jesus had taught to his followers and as they spread out across the world the message of hope and joy and forgiveness was what they preached 

“So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!

Ok I’m not saying forget our past. Some of our past we should find some pride in. But we all have stuff we wish wasn’t remember. Or shameful things we may have done! We might even wish we could change the past or miss someone in our live was still here. God can’t change your past but what he can do is put it right. He can even use it for good. By you accepting him as a light to your wold. You become a new creation entering a new stage of your life. The past is pasted, it is no longer. 

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Seek him first!

We go around life wondering when, how, why,  if. And sometime wonder when’s this God people talk about is going make an appearance, when is he going to bring us that life he promises us. Wondering when all the trouble and pain and stress is going to end. We pray to God and ask for all the things we want and want him to do. But what we fail to do is do the things he wants from us. .

You ever heard the phrase seek ye first? It’s in Matthew 6 verse 33 of the Bible. It’s also a well know song sang in churches and schools throughout the world. Written by a lady in America called Karen Lafferty, its a simple song with word direct from the bible it’s self. 

So what does it mean? Well I guess we have to go back to the begining of the chapter. It says don’t let one hand see what the other hand is doing or give to the needy in secret rather than telling others and looking for praise. It says don’t stand on the corner of streets or in crowded church’s, praying as if you’ve swallowed a dictonary, looking to impress. But go and sit alone in your room and pray personally to God and know he is listening. It also says about fasting (going without something we like). It clearly says don’t go around telling others you fasting but keep it between yourself and God. 

In today’s world we all look for others approval. We sometimes try and look for praise and tell others how great life is or how great we are because we did something good. We idolise the famous and let money rule our lives. This is not what God tells us to do.  

We don’t need other people’s approval or money to make us great. We don’t need to pretend we are as good as the next person or go along with others just to stay popular. All we need to do is seek Gods praise and  approval. Because it’s when we “seek him first” all those other things won’t matter as much, and our worries and our fears will not be taken away but fade into less significance. We will learn to know and trust God. And then all  things shall be added. 

So don’t worrie about how much better or how rich you are in the eyes of the world. Don’t worry if someone knows more than you or can preach better or can pray better. Gods already given us a perfect prayer to pray in the shape of the Lord’s Prayer. So as the bible says, worrie for nothing for when you seek God he will add all his goodness to you. 

Prayer!

There are 659 prayers in the bible, and 450 of them where recorded to have been answered. The first prayer was in Genisis where it say “people began to call on the name of the Lord”

Jesus prayed 25 times, probably more but 25 times where recorded in the bible. He also taught the disciples to pray by teaching them the Lord’s Prayer. 

Although you can pray in any position the bible states standing, kneeling, head to the ground, arm in the air and sitting. And the word Amen means so be it or let it be! 

I posted on Facebook “God is Everywhere, So pray anywhere”

Ants

The Beech

I'm lucky that I live by the sea. Some days I don't even see it, but there's something about living by the see that give you respect for the power of it. I guess we see the Wave in the winter, the change of tides and the current changes in the shore line it can create.

One of may favourite things is to walk my dog along the shore line hearing the waves roll in over the stones. Even its a ruff see or when its as calm as a mill pond the sea shows life and echos the power of God.

The sea Give a place of recreation, Boats wind surfing. Kayaking, Fishing or Swimming and as long as we give it respect we can safely enjoy the wonders of the Great Oceans.

I love walking at any time of day along the by the Sea at any time of day in the morning the air is fresh and the suns just up. In the afternoon the Prom is busy and the beach is scattered with swimmers, paddlers, stone throwers and people just chilling watching the waves. and in the evening light from the land shine bright and the lights on the boats out at sea twinkles as the boat move on the waves. 

It’s of no mistake that the bible is full of so many events that happened on, in and around the. Shores of the sea. It’s was and still is a massive part of the earth we live. Giving life, food and work to many and today even producing energy. From Noah Ark to  Jesus walking on water to meet the disciples, from Moses crossing to the disciples fishing, the sea plays a major part in the bible from begining to the end. 

Why Church Matters

Faith Like Potatoes

God Will Make Away.

Im praying very hard right no, and hope what this song tells us is right.

Surfing the Waves

So non of you come to me for relationship advice. I have a failed marriage and 2 failed meaningful  relationships in my CV. Thing is about about a relationships is we can get it so wrong. I’ve just come out of a short relationship that actually meant the world to me. Fact was this Girl was funny, attractive had an amazing passionate faith and loved her church and church family even though in some ways she found it hard to go each week.

Fact is this relationship started at 100mph and I guess when one person tried to slow down the other would not put on the breaks at the same time. We could say we let each other push things aside rather that fit into the slots that where there. And inn the end I maybe was the one that had to take my foot of the gas. I hope in time we may re unite and it be all good if not better. 

It was like a whirlwind crashing through a town smashing every thing in its path. Or a surfer, on the Crest of a wave in control of left and right but not backwards or forwards. 

A good friend asked me about how I keep my passion and my faith so positive. Because his has all but gone. 

Like that surfer. Riding the wave toward the shore, that’s just it, the surfer can only head to the shore as he twists and turns and pulls tricks before the wave crashes and the surfers stranded and fighting to stay away from the rock and fighting to get to safe water where he waits for the next wave hopefully with his surf board still attached to his wrist by rope. 

I remember when I first found my new faith in God. It was like I was unstoppable. I was loving learning new things and reading the bible like a kid with the new Harry Potter novel. Soon that that high could come to an end and I’ll be fighting to get to safety and looking and waiting for that new wave.

So how do we keep those highs going while waiting for a wave? Well I find peace in blogging. It helps me to focus on those down times like now. But also like the surfer has his surf board to keep him afloat while waiting, we have The Bible. We also gave many other things like Dailey reading guides, on line reading, apps  and maybe just chill and listen to worship music or watch a christian movie. The bible may well be just a book to some, but is a book of truth, a book of evidence and a book that will make waves in your life. Also praying helps, hey who better to talk to than God! All these things can help keep us motivated and throws fuel on the fire

Designed for Life

So what a weekend I had in The Salvation Army’s William Booth Training College. Alway exciting for a small time suffolk boy to visit London on train and had a great trip there and even saw a few sites of the capital while on the way. 

Now I’d love to do a massive blog about the weekend but I’m told to always keep blogs short. But as soon as I arrived I saw friends for Home that now live there and nice I’d seen my digs for the next two night I was relaxed and ready for the weekend. 

I’d gone with n open mind and soon got chatting to a few people over lunch. Food was good and all the people on the course including staff seemed laid back and great to get on with. 

Throughout the weekend we had meetings and small group times. Now I could say so much about the weekend and about the friends I made. But I’m writing about it somewhere else so hopefully you’ll read that too one day.

But what I wanted to bring up here was the importance I realised about being in a group of Christian. I here so many people these days say how church isn’t an important part of being a Christian and you don’t have to go to church to believe. But that weekend I herd from so many different people and spoke to so many new faces. Their influence and passion spoke wonders to me and I hope I made a difference to some of them. 

Like a sports man trains and a scholar studies, as Christian we need that too. And by joining together we can all teach, listen and learn from each other! 

General Andre Cox summed it up better than me by tweeting “Our faith is not worked out in hidden isolation; it is worked out in community and relationships.”

Just Where I Am

All day I’ve been singing an old Sally Army song. No idea where it came from and no idea why it was on my mind. But you know how it is, once in your hear you just can’t shake it and you spend all day singing or humming it. 

Now I’d be struggling to find a reason to join the band at church. I’m not in anyway gifted in music and didn’t want to join just for something to do. After all all the band must have a reason they play. 

But suddenly after thinking and praying about it I realise that maybe this wasn’t something I was doing for myself, but for god. Maybe he wanted me in the band. Maybe it the step he wants me to take that is part of his plan for me. 

Suddenly I realised the lirics to the song in my head was “just where he needs me, my Lord has placed me” maybe sometimes it’s not our will but the will of God that opens doors for us to walk through. 

Maybe you at a place thinking, what’s the point. I don’t want to be here. I have ambitions to be greater than this. Well be assured, where you are right now is where he has places us! 

Bin It!!!

This year I have been having work on the flat and made a third bedroom. This involved a new bathroom and kitchen. I'm so happy with the outcome and although still a little decorating to do Im happy with it so far. Just before the work started a friend came over to help get rid of some Junk. this I found so hard because I'm just rubbish at throwing things out, and still my flat is full of things I don't really need.

the hardest part was throwing out my boys stuff, unsure what to keep and what to dump. I'm pretty sure I got rid of 10 bin liner that week and need that friend to help motivate me and tell me to "Bin It". which I did reluctantly. The rule she used was if I've not looked at it or used it in 2 years then its going.

Why is it some things in our lives are just to hard to get rid of. These are the things that we really dont know why but store them anyway. things that are really no use or have little value. I guess for me it was a time to start over and kick of 2018 with a good feeling.

The bible tells us that God was the beggining and end. and when we come to him and ask for forgivness and ask him into our lives the bible say we are a new creation and born again, the past is whipped clean. its like throwing 10 bin liners of junk away. Starting afresh.

At times we have so much in our lives that takes up room, and stops us to move forward. Sometime in church you'll here "leave in at the cross" this i guess is another way of saying bin it. Jesus died on a cross to forgive our sins, we are also told that h makes all things work for good.
 

Shut up and Listen.

I’ve always been one of those guys that no matter how much you try and tell me, I just try and come up with the answers myself. This has pretty much been the same in my faith.

I find I have to ask questions, I have to explore possibilities and till I come to the conclusion that the answer has already been given to me. I’ve very rearly taken someone’s word for it. I was on a weekend last month that explored how God wanted or could use you. Or even how we could use our skills and pations for his good. People around me where finding things out and seeing what god was wanting of them. 

People kept telling me what they could see was my “talent” and what I should be looking into, but for me it just wasn’t clear. Then right at the end a guy stood up and said “don’t doubt what you’ve been hearing, go and explore it” 

That really hit me, the fact people had been clear in what they could see in me, people that I’d only me a day before. Strangers that could see something in me that was of God. 

Sometimes we want to ignore what we don’t like, sometimes have ideas above our station. And sometimes we just don’t believe what others say because it does come into our life’s safety zone. And I guess when that guy stood up and said not to doubt it was God saying to me “shut up, and listen” 

Dalai Lame once said something like “when you speak you only repeat something you already know, but when you listen you learn something new”. What a great way to hear from God through others around you. 

Which Path?

Chatting to a friend, I was challenged to get back into blogging again. I have to admit in the last year or two blogging has been really hard to do. I have the thoughts but guess I not felt myself good enough to publish anything.

So my challenge is to write a blog and and pot it this week. And I guess I have a lot going round in this crazy head of mine that I could in fact blog for days, I guess I've just not felt the inspiration flowing in like I have done before. Or maybe I have not felt worthy enough to post on here.

First thing you'll notice reading my blogs is the bad spelling and grammar used, in fact tat was also what my friend saw. But she also noticed I had a passion for writing and a dimple way of getting the massage across. So with her encouragement ringing in my ears I decided to start typing and see where it lead.

There's a passage in the bible saying ''In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will direct your path.'' When speaking to my friend she reminded me of the saying ''God doesn't call the equipped, he equips the called'' and unless we try and move forward and follow what we feel may be Gods calling then we will never fin out gods will for our lives.

Life is full of what ifs and if only, they are sayings I am sure we have all got hanging around our thoughts from time to time but unless we act on those thoughts we may never reach our full potential.

One of my favourite bits of the bible says something like ''He who watches the rain will never sow, and he who watches the wind will not reap''. In other words if we don't look into those things we feel god is telling us then we cant ever act on them. You may be wrong and if so at least you can move on, but if your right, imagine the great things God can achieve through you.

I'm trying to acknowledge him and still unsure of the ways he wants me to go, but looking at all possible routes, but i do know I can try and blog more often if that's a possible way towards his directed path.

After all he turns our weaknesses into his opportunities and that mean he has a heck of a lot of opportunities in me.

Bow the Knee

Ruth

One Character I cam across recently is Ruth. She was given up by her father and given to the Egyptian Pharaoh.

At that time young girls where sacrificed as the people of Egypt believed this brought purity and clean life to the people of their country.

Ruth was no exception, a pretty little girl that was chosen by the king to be the one that was honoured to be sacrificed. but just as she was to be taken away and prepared for the ritual the king noticed a blemish on her skin. This meant Ruth was freed of the killing and another girl was taken instead.

Its a long story but Ruth becomes a Christian and ends up in Bethlehem where she is mocked and hated by local people because of her past.

On Ruths Journey she had married a man called Mohlon who had died at the hands on the Egyptians, she stayed and travel to Bethlehem with her mother in law Naomi.

One day while Naomi was worried and wondering if Ruth was going to be safe she met a traveller who told her all was going to be well and God will bless Ruth with a new husband and they will have Children and the children will have children and one of the children's children would be King. (at least something like that) and also somewhere along the line child would be born that will be worshipped as the Massiah (Son of God).

Anyway its a very very rough outline of the story and sure enough the travellers word was spot on.

Ruth's upbringing was harsh, she was destined to die as sacrifice to a faulse God, but the true God had plans for Ruth and used a blemish on her skin to save her from death. he then used Mahlon to tell her about a Christian beliefs and then Naomi to show love as a mother. Ruth had been through some hard times but each time God had it in control.

God says Trust in him. he has plans for each of us and those plans are better then we could ever believe. Just like Ruth. God has a plan for each of us but cant begin to help unless we ask him for it