Friday 27 August 2010

Perfect Peace

No-one knows when they are going to die or say how long they are going to live. Now I know no-one likes to think about that sort of a thing because people naturally want to live long and happy....
But today I was thinking about dying for some reason and I thought that say I was on my death bed, and all I was accustomed to thinking about was fansisy and that was what I was thinking about on my death bed. I wouldn't go to heaven would I? If I were dying I would want to be thinking about Bible promises and keeping your mind on 'Him'. Wouldn't you? And I thought of the Bible verse: Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee; ..... But then I thought, now how can you just keep your mind stayed on Him all the time? And the answer came, read the Bible. Simple as that. Read your Bible every day. And you wilt be kept in perfect peace. Don't you just love the sound of that? Perfect Peace? That is what everyone longs for. The answer is short and simple. Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee. It's in the Bible. Anyone can have perfect peace. They just need to keep his mind on Jesus and His promises.

Thursday 26 August 2010

Be Faithful

My two sibling are in Switzerland right now, and they visited the Waldensian Valleys of La Torre, Torre Pellice, Pra Dell Torno, Angrogna and the Mt Castelluzzo. The Waldensians were Christians that lived in the mountains and valleys near the roman catholics. The catholics tried time and time again to convert them to roman catholicism, but they held fast to the truth even though often times they were thrown over precipice to a cruel death below, slaughted like pigs. As in this sonnet that Milton wrote: -

"Avenge, O Lord, Thy slaughtered saints, whose bones
Lie scattered on the Alpine mountains cold.
* * * in Thy book recorded their groans
Who were Thy sheep, and in their ancient fold,
Slain by the bloody Piedmontese, that rolled
Mother with infant down the rocks. Their moans
The vales redoubled to the hills, and they
To heaven."
(* * * - their names)

But they held fast to their Redeemer, Who lives. Through all trials and conflicts, they held onto one motto - Be Faithful. They were Faithful even unto death. And "The Light shines into the darkeness". They were missionaries to the catholics, and the light from their story has never gone out.
Let us, hold to their motto, let us Be Faithful. They went through many a hard times, death from enemies always on there trail, but they stayed Faithful. We should praising and thanking God for the easy time we have, but it won't always be that way.

Lord stay by our side, and help us to Be Faithful and to shine the light into the darkness that those who don't know you might find the Light and be saved. Amen.

Friday 20 August 2010

Sabbath

   This week we preserved apple sauce. There was a lot of work involved. I got sore fingers from cutting apples into the huge drums. Then we cut even more while what was on the stove cooking! We got to have a break from cutting when we bottled the sauce.  That was good but during the bottling we managed to burn our fingers!  Dad burnt his worse than mine as he was putting the apple sauce into the bottles. After Dad had filled the jars it was my job to take the jars to the desk to allow them to cool.  As soon as we had bottled all of the apples that we had done we were back to cutting, that is until we ran out of space!  When the jars had cooled enough we washed the outside of the jars and stacked them up high in the pantry.

    Wow!  We had done a few hundred jars!  What a sight!  Before I knew it, the week had passed and it was Friday afternoon and the sun was setting.  We had worship and opened the Sabbath.  Ah!  I was so happy to rest from all  of that hard work on this special day God had set aside for us!

    Exodus 20:8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
    20:9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
    20:10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
    20:11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

    God rested on the Sabbath, then commanded that we do the same, as a sign that we were His and obeyed Him our maker. Many people think that, when Jesus died on the cross, that the 4th commandment died with Him, er, that it was changed to Sunday. But what happened to what Jesus said to the Israelites?
    Matthew 5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
    5:18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
    5:19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

    If the 4th commandment died at the cross with Jesus, then would not all the commandments have gone to the cross with Him also? Then does that mean that we can kill, (6th) commit adultery (7th), steal (8th) lie (9th) too as well as ignore the Sabbath?

    I cannot see anywhere in the Bible evidence for Sunday keeping or the abolishment of the Sabbath.
    So happy Sabbath everyone!

Wednesday 11 August 2010

Faith

Habakkuk 2:4 Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.
Indeed it was that that saved many a person, in Jesus' day there many who Jesus couldn't heal because of lack of faith. Oh let us never lack faith! How many times did Jesus say in the Bible "O ye of little faith"? I want you to go to your Bible and see, and then tell me.

The disciples and Jesus were on the lake and Jesus was asleep. And then the winds were blowing a gale, the disciples were afraid, even though the Saviour of the whole world was there, - asleep. And they doubted and became afraid! and said Lord save us! We perish.
Matthew 8:26 And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.
If they had had faith, they would have been sure of safety, and not been afraid because Jesus was with them, the same as He is with us all the time. Though we do with the mortal eye see him, Jesus is ever by our side, ready to catch us, and to hold us up, if only we would have faith. What is faith? It a question for you to answer. (on "comments".)

Sunday 8 August 2010

Ruth

Ruth 1:15...........And she said, Behold, thy sister in law is gone back unto her people, and unto her gods: return thou after thy sister in law. 
1:16 And Ruth said, Entreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:

Here we have a Moabitish woman, who grew up in a pagan family, worshiping pagan gods, and living with her whole family. And her husband died and Naomi, thinking of how they would probably not like Bethlehem because of all the differences I named above, told them to go home. Orpah went home.

But Ruth was steadfast. She had seen what she wanted, and her eye was on that goal. She wanted not a husband, she wanted God, Naomi had something she didn't, (not the bitternes), and she wanted it, more than home, family, friends, old gods, and an husband. She wanted God, the only one infinate, the one who could give her peace which was void in her culture. And she was willing to leave all to find it, to leave negetive influences, so that she could be with a city, a nation of people who worshiped the God she was looking for. And because she cared not for things of sentamentality, such as family and home, and that she was looking for a higher calling, God blessed her with a home of her own, a husband and a child, and a mother in law for the childs nurse.

Let us all seek God in earnest, with all our heart, forgetting all but not, and clinging to God our only comforter. Let us stay by God's side, and let us not forget the price paid for us, and the meaning of it. Amen.

Saturday 7 August 2010

Proverbs - Wine

Proverbs 23:1 When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, consider diligently what is before thee:
And put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite. 

Wow, here it really says in plain language, that an uncontrolled appetite, is dangerous and bad! If you look at the world, you will see it in many things, the crimes mainly.
Alcohol - many crimes are about because of uncontrolled appetite. If they could control their appetite, they wouldn't drink alcohol in the first place!
Prov 23:19   Hear thou, my son, and be wise, and guide thine heart in the way. 
23:20   Be not among winebibbers; among riotous eaters of flesh: 
23:21   For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty: and drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags.

The drunkard and the glutton are pacificly named. Do not glut yourself, and do not "drink".
A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished. The simple are the ones that drink, and glut themselves on food when they shouldn't. The prudent are wise and don't.
Prov 20:1 Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise. Those that are deceived by drink, is not wise. It has been said, in the Bible.

1 Kings 4:30 And Solomon's wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east country, and all the wisdom of Egypt. 
4:31 For he was wiser than all men; ...................... and his fame was in all nations round about.
4:32 And he spake three thousand proverbs: and his songs were a thousand and five.

Wow! And we only have about 30! And indeed, they are proverbs to be remembered.

Friday 6 August 2010

Sisters

Top - Right: Bethany & Danica, Front: Me, Stella, & Cherith.
I have four sisters, and here is my deffinition of what sisters are for. ;-)
A sister is your friend for life, she shares everything, she is always there for you.

All my sisters are my best friends. They are the ones that are there for me to tell my secrets, to share my troubles with and to defend each other. We would do anything for each other.

My sisters share with me. :D When Bethany was here for a visit, you know what she shared with me? She was so sweet, she was kind enough to share her cold with me! LOL
I share many of my goats with Stella, and she shares them with me. :D

When I am hurting, my sister/s are/is always there for me, to tell my troubles to, and to advise me what to do. They are there for me to share my joys with and to share fun. (like the goats!)

Many don't realise how precious their sisters (siblings in general) are until they almost die or something like that. And I don't want that to have to happen to for me realise that they are very precious family jems, that I don't want to lose.

I love you, my sisters! Mwah! ~ Jana

Thursday 5 August 2010

Job's Trials

Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him Job 13:15 
Here Job shows an attitude of complete implicit trust. Through trials and conflicts he hold onto his only true support, as you see in the next verse:
I have heard many such things: miserable comforters are ye all. Job 16:2 "Miserable comforters" indeed! Suffer me that I may speak; and after that I have spoken, mock on. Job 21:3
My friends scorn me: but mine eye poureth out tears unto God. Job 16:20 "My friends scorn me", even though, his friends were there, they were all saying it was his fault, obviously he had provoked God to anger with him, and he was the cause of his own troubles.
but he continues to defend himself, he knows that he is right, whether he will make it or not to the end of this trial, he says: For I know [that] my redeemer liveth; Job 19:25 "For I know my Redeemer liveth", here again he shows complete trust in his Saviour. And here his trust that he will stand the trial: But he knoweth the way that I take: [when] he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold. My foot hath held his steps, his way have I kept, and not declined. Job 23:10-11 We shall all, that hide in Christ, come forth as gold. ~ Jana

Trials Cleanse

The other day I was reading Isaiah as I am up to there in my Bible reading, and I was reading in chapter 6 about how Isaiah saw God and exclaimed: Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts. "I am a man of unclean lips", it is a verse true for everyone. Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar: This is about the trials that God uses to try us. And he laid [it] upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged. The trial taken with Christ's help, and endurance, purges us and we are clean. Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here [am] I; send me. It took that, the trials that God sends us, to cleanse us and purge us from sin before he can use us in others. As Job says: But he knoweth the way that I take: [when] he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold. My foot hath held his steps, his way have I kept, and not declined.
And with the grace and power of Jesus, we can endure these trials, and be tried, melted and molded in the fire before we can be used for heavenly purposes. ~ Jana

Wednesday 4 August 2010

Safe in the Arms of Jesus

Just today I was on my way back from town with mum. We had taken Jamella with us and right then she was cuddled up on my lap probably asleep. As we were driving along, I saw on the side of the road two eagles, and so I told mum: "Did you see those two eagles??" "No....... you know they could've taken Jamella if she had been out there and on her own." "Yes, but she is safe in my arms." That was where I thought of the object lesson:
Satan is out there, looking around, looking for prey for him to devour. And if we are on our own, he will take us, and devour us. But if we are safe in the arms of Jesus, he cannot do any more than look on and try tempt us. But since we are safe in the arms of Jesus, we are safe because Jesus will protect us if we stay right in his arms. ~ Jana