When God Positions You


When God POSITIONS you, He has a way of putting you in a place where you have no choice but to move from the safe center to the uncertain edge of a new experience!

It’s here that you learn the value of faith and fuel of prayer.

Once you have taken that leap of faith you can say Job42:5 “I had heard of You only by the hearing of the ear, but now my spiritual eye sees You.

Nothing can rob you of this revelation

Oh yes sometimes the road ahead is unchartered, sometimes obscured, sometimes seems inaccessible but if He takes us to it, He will take us through it. I don’t always get it right because I am human and sometimes frail compared to the obstacles but I have learnt to embrace my life as it is without regrets, or post-mortems about the past, without offence in the present and unfailing faith in a future where God is already.

CALLED TO REIGN IN CHRIST


The Word of God says we are “In Christ”– present tense.

Death could not seize on Paul whenever it wanted to although there were many opportunities.

It was after he had proclaimed – “I have run the race; I have kept the course NOW there is laid up for me a crown” then he was martyred!

We are not heirs apparent e.g. Prince Charles is waiting to ascend – we a joint heir “In Christ”

 Therefore, reign in your life

Joseph Prince

ETERNITY IS NOT A VARIABLE ITS AN ABSOLUTE

Eternity is not a variable it is an absolute and in comparison, this “life” on earth is but a moment in time.

We do not take money or possessions with us into this unknown eternal life but only that which we carry in our hearts.

The big question then; what do you fill your heart with because it will manifest in your life. The door to the other side can open suddenly – no time for regrets, no time to forgive, no time to say if only, no time to make right and more importantly no time to tell people you love them.

Listen to the voice of your heart and live life gently esteeming others as equal before God

Reconciliation

The Word tells us to bless and pray for our enemies as it will be like heaping coals of fire on their heads. Some believe that this means things will go wrong with their enemies and they will be vindicated.

 Not so: Gods purpose is always reconciliation!

The Lord says “abound in love”. Let there be no slackening of patient, tender love which heaps coals on the wrongdoer, and will never rest until it has subdued the evil intent in their hearts, overcoming it with good. Love must and will ultimately conquer hate!

We Are Consecrated So That We Can Consecrate

We are all called to redemption but the multitude does not necessarily choose to be part of Christ mission to save the sons of men. It is sufficient for them to know they HAVE BEEN CONSECRATED BUT THEY DON’T NECESSARILY WANT TO BE PART OF ANOTHERS CONSECRATION.

But to those who feel they have been consecrated to consecrate, allow me to share this story:

When Abraham Lincoln dedicated for the purpose of a graveyard the field of Gettysburg, where so many brave soldiers had lost their lives he said “We cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men who struggled here have consecrated it far beyond our power to add or detract. It is for us the living, rather to be dedicated to the unfinished work for which they have fought here.

If you feel that your life must make a difference for Christ be assured that as he ever lives to make intercession for mankind how much more does, He make intercession for those who enter in and dedicate themselves to His unfinished work on this earth.

You have been consecrated and whoever crosses your path, the lives you touch will be consecrated unto Him. It is impossible for the saint to gaze long on the stigmata without becoming branded with the marks of Jesus. It is impossible for people to gaze upon your consecration without becoming imbued with it. FOR DID HE NOT SAY AS HE IS SO ARE, WE IN THIS WORLD.

John 17:19 FB Meyer

THEY DARED TO BE DIFFERENT

THEY DARED TO BE DIFFERENT AND DID NOT ONLY RELY ON THEIR OWN INTELLIGENCE SMART SET OF RULES OR PERSONAL ABILITIES

When a believer chooses to make some sort of difference for God and to become a “voice” for the cause of Righteousness it will sometimes be difficult, there will be test and trials. However there will be many Mountain Top experiences when you know that you know God has manifested Himself to you.

It builds my faith to acquaint myself with the lives of these mighty men and women of God.

I am sure people such as Christ’s Apostles were ordinary people just like us. The Lord did not hesitate to reveal their weaknesses so that we can realize that it is through His Grace and Power that we can pursue a “cause” and become a” voice” and it is not our own intelligence, smart set of rules or personal abilities.

Such men and women dared to be different

GODS REST IN THE MIDST OF A STORM

A Maverick roll in high and fierce

Deafening drones lost in its relentless path

Tunnel’s of froth majestic in their descent

As a I traverse the tempestuous sea

Your love and mercy

Feeds my tired soul

In the midst of the storm within

I know my landing is secure

In the centre I see a White Form

Grant me Lord

That I guard the shores of Your peace

Boisterous waves of emotions flee

As I flow in the gentle rhythms of Your Grace

Finally, still in the quiet presence of Your rest

Maria

DIALOGUE WITH GOD - TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE FATHER!!

God chose an earthen Vessel

Fashioned from lowly clay

Stripped of Heavens Glory

For all man’s sins to pay

Christ passed the baton over

To my trembling human hand

Then my Saviour whispered

“Child it’s time to take a stand

I called you as an eagle

To soar the heights above

I come beneath your wings of clay

That you may know this flight of Love

The circumstances of your life

Shook the earth beneath your feet

But it was My unseen hand that turned your face

My unwavering gaze to meet”

“I submit my heart before You

As You charter my life’s course

A faithful loving Father 

You are my only source”

My spirit knows no boundaries

As I embark upon this race

My overwhelming passion to share His matchless Grace

“you are the apple of my eye

Your name inscribed upon my Hand

Now pass the baton on

So that others too may stand” Maria

THAT GOD SHOULD LOVE THE HUMAN BEING WITH THE SAME LOVE THAT HE LOVED HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON IS A MAJESTIC REVELATION

“The supreme revelation which towers above the rest, like some great banyan tree amid the slenderer growth of the Indian Forest, is that the Creator should indwell and find a mansion in the heart of His creatures” JB Meyer

This is why we can “Love the Lord Thy God with all thy soul and all thy heart”

Yet multitudes live a separated life from an awareness of God let alone His all prevailing love for mankind.

THIS BRINGS ME TO ANOTHER POINT; WHAT HAPPENED TO THE SECOND COMMANDMENT;

“Love one another”

Church Splits, Offended Christians, Broken Christian Relationships, Lack of Honour for Spiritual Fathers and Mothers, Factions, Serious Doctrinal Differences; so, the long list goes on.

What happened to our submission to Christ’s Prayer?

“Father that they may be one as We are one”

The early church knew the Glory of God because they existed for the Glory of God 

The early church did not have any need because they lived for the common good.

The early church submitted to one another because fundamentally they knew they were part of a Spiritual Body.

Today these truths are secondary. Many believers think the church exists to benefit them, forgetting that they are the “church “but for the Grace of God to benefit the world

IT IS A GRAVE SIN TO SHUN ONES ERSTWHILE SHEPHERDS, FELLOW BELIEVERS BROTHERS AND SISTERS;

The wounded body should be primary yet it is shunned as a secondary issue.

ONE LIMB OF THE BODY OF CHRIST cannot say to another limb “you are unacceptable therefore I cut you off

“Learn to revere the work of God in the souls of others. Destroy not the soul for whom Christ died and in whom Christ lives! Weak and erring, trying and vexatious thy fellow believer may yet be, yet there is a chamber in his nature in which God has already taken up abode.

The conflict between that which is of the spirit and that which is of the flesh may be long and arduous but the fact remains. Assist but do not hinder the process. Be reverent, careful and mindful of the presence of God in another. “JB Meyer

Do not judge another’s walk as the Husbandmen holds the compass.

We want the Power without the Price.

We want the Glory without the Obedience.

Seek ye first!

Seek ye first!

So arise today
Blessed by all things,
Wings of breath,
Delight of eyes,

WHY I BECAME A BLOGGER


I have come to love blogs. I am passionate about people and Blogs reveal how unique people are and the beauty they have inside. If only they would let it out. 


I have discovered that bloggers come in all shapes and sizes. Age colour, culture or the country where they live does not matter. The inner person is lovely and gifted. God has no favourites. 
Sometimes a blogger is house bound, suffering financially or even bedridden because they have no choice.... through blogging they discover a life beyond their bedroom, four walls or circumstances. They can give expression of who they are on the inside beyond the struggles and challenges of life and can connect with others that give their life some colour or meaning. They can visit worlds beyond horizons through picture blogs; they can gain perspective and knowledge that enriches their intellect. All this and more they have at their fingertips. More importantly they are not judged by where they live, what they have, what they know or what they look like, they are known by who they really are on the inside. 


I have been amazed to read and see what people come up with. The diversity and individualism astound me. I am a preacher by profession but thankfully my pulpit is not limited to a building but can be found in the highways and byways of life. People are suffering out there and if by blogging one can bring a smile to their face or a word of encouragement and hop, e then it was worth it. 
I salute the generous Bloggers and Face Bookers who do not mind sharing their beauty. 

I often hear people say "Ah look at them its Karma" This is mean and misunderstood!

Karma – Cause and Effect

There is such a thing as Karma – the Godly principle is “you reap what you sow”

However oftentimes we look at people and their suffering and we say “Hm Karma”

This is not necessarily true.

God is a God of mercy and He promises to “cause all things to work together for good for those who love Him”

God is a God of forgiveness. Sometimes people suffer because they are self-sacrificing and lay down their lives for others.

For e.g. - Mother Theresa – but there are many self-sacrificing souls all around us who do not speak of their Acts of Mercy but quietly go around doing good.

The Apostle Paul endured suffering to the point of death. What did he say to this?

“Imprisonments often, beaten times without number, often in danger of death. Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep. I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren; I have been in labour and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure”

This was not Karma, the Glory of God (His manifest presence) rested on Paul and because we live in a fallen world, he had a spiritual enemy who hounded him through people and circumstances.

Paul goes on to say “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh”

Then why do people suffer?

Sometimes people suffer because they have a Godly Spirit in a hostile world. People are persecuted and murdered daily because they love God

Sometimes people suffer due to injustices of worldly systems. There are millions of displaced people especially children who suffer due to injustices

Sometimes people suffer because they have made wrong decisions. I think here we can all relate.

Sometimes people suffer because they have wronged others. Here we SHOULD all relate and this could be termed Karma or cause and effect.

When we judge people and label their suffering as Karma it will behove us to remember that there is not one single Human being on this planet who has not wronged someone.

GOD WILL GO TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH FOR JUST ONE PERSON

“JEFF”

 A SUPERNATURAL EXPERIENCE!!!

I held down many jobs in the UK and was always looking for more opportunities as I needed the money to refurbish the church. 

Anglian Doors and Windows approached me and asked whether I would become a Sales Consultant. It was a very well paid and, in some ways, prestigious job.

I agreed to give it a try and was booked for a week’s training in Norwich the last week in February 2011. Norwich was three hours’ drive from where I lived.

The Sunday that I was scheduled to check in at the hotel I called only to be told that the company had made a mistake and I was booked for the following week. The weather turned nasty and by the Sunday when we had to leave it started snowing.

I was not very well at the time and looked forward to a week, ensconced in a beautiful warm hotel not having to drive to a few clients every day through the snow drifts. The added bonus was that I would be spoilt with three warm meals a day that I did not have to cook.

We were 16 delegates, 14 men and only 2 women. From the outset Jeff, a round jovial little man latched onto me and sat next to me at every meal. He said that he enjoyed talking to me. There was another delegate on the course, a very well turned out man who also made sure that he sat opposite me at every meal but for a very different reason. He professed to be an atheist and believed that he was actually called to turn people away from God.

I don’t usually tell people in a business environment that I am a Minister but somehow this atheist knew and he proceeded to harass me at every meal about my faith. The first and second time I just smiled and let him speak. By the third meal I had had enough and realized there is no way he can leave the course without me telling him what the gospel is all about. I found myself sharing the Word in no uncertain terms at every meal and all the while Jess sat next to me listening intently.

When the course ended the snow was so thick that no one could fetch me. The atheist who happened to live near my village offered to take me home as he was also dropping Jeff at his flat. At first, I was hesitant but after putting a few security measures in place I agreed. We stopped at Jeff’s flat to briefly use the toilet and I was soon safely home. Three weeks went by. One Sunday morning I opened the Sunday paper and found a very familiar face staring back at me. It was Jeff but the headline was horrific. It said “Man murdered and body parts strewn all over the country”

I was in a state of shock and made some enquiries. The police had arrested a suspect who turned out to be the murderer. It was Jeff’s flatmate. 

Naturally I went to God in prayer and asked the age-old question “why”.

You see God knew Jeff was going to be murdered, He knew Jeff needed to hear the Gospel perhaps once again, God knew that when the point of death came that perhaps Jeff would call out to Him.

I never sold many Anglian products but I was well paid for the training and made good sales for a few weeks and then the job became too arduous as the kit was heavy to lug around.

You see I was sent to be in the right place at the right time. It was a sobering experience but it also taught me;

NEVER TAKE ANY ENCOUNTER FOR GRANTED AND NEVER HESITATE TO MAKE THIS GOD I LOVE SO MUCH KNOWN. EVEN IF IT MAKES ME UNPOPULAR, EVEN IF I AM RIDICULED. I CANNOT AFFORD NOT TO BE OBEDIENT TO THIS GOD WHO BECAME OBEDIENT TO THE POINT OF DEATH ON A CROSS FOR ME!!!

MAY JEFF REST IN PEACE

GOD TOOK PLEASURE IN FORMING YOU

In Psalm 139: 13 – 16 David relays how God fashioned each one of us. In the original text in verse 15 this portion of scripture states;

 (Amplified Bible) my frame was not hid from You when I was being formed in secret, intricately and curiously wrought (as if embroidered with various colours)

Your birth dear friend was not a mistake. God took pleasure in forming you. Like a master craftsman He chose each one of your members.

THEY FOUND THEIR WORTH IN GOD

You can say “but ah Maria what about those born in poor parts of Africa and India, what about those who have no chance in life. I would say to you with God nothing is impossible.

I have met a young woman who escaped the atrocities of Ruanda. Poor, seemingly scarred for life BY WITNESSING HOW HER WHOLE FAMILY WAS SLAUGHTERED BY HER OWN PEOPLE, yet, she rose above it and became a lawyer.

 A small little Albanian nun who lived amongst the poorest of the poor touched the world – her name was Mother Theresa.  Why, because she found her worth in God eyes and not in the eyes of circumstances or of the world.

The Beautiful thing about our God is that he majors in individualism - there is no one like you. Like these birds unique, beautiful a work of art!!! How much more a human who is a bearer of His Glory!!

HE HEARS OUR SOFTEST SIGH AND ACTS ON THE SLIGHTEST WHISPER 


This morning I am ever mindful that we should protect our hearts as this is Gods Spirit place of Abode. If our heart is not at peace then we do not experience Gods presence, this does not mean He is not there. 


He made provision as Prayer is not trying to twist Gods arm to hear us, it is simply whispering “Father”!


A little baby or a child cannot utter a sigh without the mother’s attention. Today I have adult children and they need only to utter the word “hello” or “mother” and I know – It is a crisis, they are sad, there is a need, they have good news. I do not ask can I help; at that moment I will move heaven and earth to be the solution and woe to the enemy as I have a mother’s fury. 


How much more, how much more, how much more is the Fathers heart not mindful of our slightest sigh!


There is a “River” that makes glad the city of God – Perennially from the lips of our Saviour pours out a Stream by the precious Holy Spirit of tender love and supplication. He pleads on the darkest mountain while we are asleep. How much I need to learn not to be mindful of many things such as Martha but to patiently sit at my Masters feet like Mary learning of Him, so that I too may be an epistle read by men of His great faithfulness and love.


He wakens me morning by morning calling “come away with Me and your heart will be at rest” – most of the time I heed the call as I am addicted to this Great God of Love. Help me Lord to Hear Your faintest whisper as You hear mine!

God Knows Who and What We Need On Our Spiritual Journey To Bring Us To Maturity


I am so grateful for the people that have impacted my life, either personally or through their writings. I honour the mentors the Lord has given me to assist me on this Life’s “journey” in Him. Some have passed on to Glory but the seed remains and the Spirit of God quickens the incorruptible seed when it is needed.


This morning I remember Elizabeth Austin, my friend and mentor. She was a tiny little woman but had a Spirit larger than life. Her message was simple but profound.

What Was Elizabeth’s Secret?


What was your secret Elizabeth Austin – It was so simple - simply this; 


She practiced the Presence of God; He was her constant companion.

She deeply loved God and knew Him intimately and could therefore enter into His compassion for a lost world.

She had the courage to seek out the lost where many men would never venture to go.

She always gave the Lord the Glory.

She did not count the cost but persevered.

She moved as the Spirit willed. I saw more tangible miracles in her life than in many church services where everything was done correctly and in order.


I too have shared from the pulpit, I too have shared the Word, but it was not the times that I tried to be correct scripturally, deliver a perfect sermon or made sure the people enjoyed themselves,  that I saw His power, it was simply in the times when I loved them with the Love of God and was moved with compassion that He revealed Himself.


I am honoured that I knew Elizabeth, this amazing prophet of God. She was imperfect like all of us but she was obedient and deeply in love with God.  She died at age 82.

I will not be surprised if the Lord also stood up like He did for Stephen the first martyr when she was presented before His throne of Grace. 


I am so blessed that 4 months before her death she rose from her sickbed which eventually became her deathbed,  just to separate me once again to go into the world to be His hands and feet, His eyes and tongue, to be His heart and if at all possible, in a small way to love the way He loved. 


Thank you, Lord, that you make me able not man and that like Elizabeth you make my head as hard as flint to be obedient

Temper Adversity  - dont run from it!

Rick Godwin tells the story of his father who was a pilot in the US Military. He did clandestine operations and if his plane would go down no one knew about it, as if he never existed. Soldiers who were wounded in battle during clandestine operations often returned to the battlefield. These soldiers who were brave enough to go back into combat were awarded a medal known as the eye of the “tiger”. When a fellow soldier saw that medal, he knew he was looking at a seasoned soldier, a predator, who had become a lethal weapon in the hands of the military -  Rick Godwin


So, it is with a seasoned man or woman of God who has tempered adversity. They become the predator against the works of darkness and a lethal weapon in the hands of God. They overcome him (satan) by the Blood of the Lamb and the Word of their testimony.


We live in a fallen world and adversity comes to the saved and the unsaved, however we have an Ark called Christ and it is sealed by His blood. We can temper adversity and pass through the midst.


If satan had not come against Lazarus he would not need to be raised from the dead and multitudes would not have heard about Jesus.


If Goliath had not defied the armies of God a boy named David would not have knocked the giant out with a stone and slain him with his own sword. 


When Stephen was martyred a man in the crown named Saul one of the greatest persecutors of the church held the apostle’s cloak, however Stephens death put one of the most powerful weapons of our age in the hand of God namely Paul who wrote two thirds of the New Testament.


Adversity comes but greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world. Each time we overcome we become more lethal in the hands of God against the powers of darkness - Maria

Life is a gift. 

Each person has a unique journey and deserves to tell their story. Sadly only a few consider their lives interesting enough to write a memoir or autobiography. Some individuals are famous or lucky enough and their life is recorded as a biography or film because it is considered to have value. 

I believe in each persons journey there are many “magical treasures” to be found amongst the debris of the ordinary and mundane.

My memories have always been important to me. I try to capture these memories of my life on paper or on camera, whenever possible. Each memory and photograph seems to have a story and in order to remember  I documented these incidents in journals that I dubbed “Definitive Moments” 

Over the years  my piles of journals grew because I’ve been fortunate enough to have a varied and interesting journey. 

When I started to write it was like the sluice gates of my soul had been opened. Memories flooded into my mind from the deep recesses where I had stored them. The memories took form and flowed onto paper like a kaleidoscope of words forming colourful pictures of my life.

Like the dam water it pushed aside all thoughts of the here and now and I was constantly reaching for a pen before the memory would be engulfed in the next. It was awesome and I knew this is what I would like to spend more time doing. My life gained new meaning as I realized these stories were about my life. My friends often laughed at me and said I was funny, I could never see it now I understood that sometimes my perceptions saw the comical side of a situation not in a judgemental way but merely an observation of the “quirky”.

I have many manuscripts waiting to see the light of day but to publish takes time and money. The next best thing is to Blog!

As someone once said “we are all a part of those we have met” We are not islands unto ourselves. On my journey I encountered many wonderful people who gave meaning to my life. These unique individuals from all cultures have shaped who I am and left their indelible footprints on my soul.

Telling my story is a way of saying thank you and celebrating their lives.