Posts Tagged ‘Jesus’

29.Aug.2012 |

Only Christ

Written by Jill
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Everyone enters into a marriage with certain expectations. This is part of begin human. Both you and your partner have expectations.

Nearly 25 years into our marriage, Dean and I still have differences. Initially in our marriage, dirty clothes could be strewn around the bedroom, but after many years he learned to put them in the hamper. This journey of learning included a few years of stacking them neatly in the bathroom next to the bath so that I could take them to the washing machine.

Often we expect our partners to help us feel complete. It is imperative for us to realize that the only relationship that can fulfill us is a relationship with Jesus Christ. Others can give us support, but only Christ fulfills.

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01.Aug.2012 |

Emotions Under Control

Written by Jill
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When facing crises and painful situations, it’s difficult to live according to biblical teachings. When one chooses a standard other than principles of the Bible, the likelihood of experiencing something like depression increases.

Jesus is the ultimate example of looking to God when emotions run high. Even though he never sinned, he did feel the temptation of giving in to his emotions. Mark 4 is a prime example of Jesus being tempted while he spent forty days without food.

Let us focus on God, in doing so the intensity of painful emotions are reduced.

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23.Apr.2012 |

Pain, Hurt and Jesus

Written by Jill
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Ever been hurt or felt let down in life? King David faced betrayal by King Saul and yet he loved Saul. The book of Ruth shows that Ruth’s life took a huge downward turn as did Naomi’s.

Pain and hurt are a part of life. They can act though as a mechanism of growth.

In Matthew 18:20, Jesus says “Where two or three others gather together as my followers, I am there among them.”

Our vertical relationship with Christ depends on our horizontal relationships with others. What influential company surrounds us?

Following this verse is the story of an unforgiving and unmerciful servant. When we don’t forgive others, the main damage is to ourselves. This unforgiving servant was imprisoned and tortured due to his unforgiveness.

When we are unmerciful to another, our entire life is poisoned.

There may be truth in our thoughts regarding our hurt but there is a right way to handle these situations. The dwelling on hurt in ourselves and with others only imprisons and tortures us further.

In verse 33, Jesus tells us that we are to have mercy for others and their shortcomings, as He had mercy for us.

Do we remember the power of our relationships with fellow believers? Christ is in our midst. Do we therefore in these times release poison or the grace of God? Grace and mercy for others frees us. Grace and mercy is soothing and sets us up for a great day. Grace and mercy strengthens relationships in a world where there is so much brokenness. Forgiveness takes us forward in life.

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11.Jan.2012 |

Unity. What Do We Believe?

Written by Jill
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“I will build my church and all the powers of hell will not conquer it.” (Matthew 16:18). These are the words of Jesus. Therefore  it’s  not worth trying to criticize or tear down the church. It just means that there are battles to fight in life.

People fought persecution in the Bible. It cannot be avoided. We can try to hide or even swap sides such as is seen in a battle between David and the Philistines. This though only causes confusion.

God will build the church in spite of every thing, even our opinion

So why do we fight unity?

No one apart from God knows another thoroughly, not even in marriage. Therefore at times, opportunities to doubt another are plentiful. To doubt is easy because each of us is filled with imperfection.

Unity means that we are united despite imperfection. Our strengths strengthen another in vulnerable times. Unity doesn’t mean that we default because of another’s faults.

At other times, we’ll want to default from unity to justifies ourselves. Another may be under accusation and so we use his situation to justify our actions. We will say things such as “we knew in our gut” or “I just knew”. We therefore believe the Lord is vindicating us. We build a case against the person to justify our position. Of these situations though, Jesus informs us in Matthew 7:3, to look at our own faults rather than those of another.

Lastly, we fear for our own reputation. What  if I appear a fool by remaining united? What if I’m believing the wrong person?

Our reputation though is to be risked for that of Christ’s. Jesus gave up His reputation and became a servant to others (Philippians 2:7).

God is still building His Church no matter what.

We are to align on God’s side. We dont create our own side and expect God to join us. We are to stand for Christ and therefore remain in Him even if it’s uncomfortable.  Standing on His side means that we remain united through the good but also the tough times. Better to take this position than sitting on the sidelines swinging useless punches and causing confusion.

Unity means that we will fight disunity. It means that we believe God and His promises in the Bible rather than succumbing to passing and temporary hearsay.

Don’t  waste time creating chaos. Rather build the church, help others up when they stumble. Stand for Christ and His church.

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05.Jul.2011 |

Faith, Water and Miracles

Written by Jill
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Problems arrive on everyones doorstep. Some are of our own doing while others are not. What do we do? How does faith work in these situations?

Matthew 14 has some great tips. We read of twelve men in a dangerous storm but only one takes steps to get through this storm. Peter the apostle took action while the other eleven allowed themselves to be owned by fear. And so why did Peter get to walk on water and not the others?

1. Simply, because Peter asked. In the storm, the others saw only the storm and a ghost. Peter didn’t waste time in self pity but saw Jesus in the storm.

Peter demonstrated a quality of faith that the scriptures repeatedly exhort us to: “keep on asking” (Mat.7:7 AMP); “in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” (Phil.4:6)

2. What did Peter ask for? He asked for Christ’s Word: “if it’s you…tell me…” He sought God first rather than just leaping out of the boat to escape trouble.

Faith is not a tool to achieve our own agenda. Peter wasn’t making demands or claiming his ‘right’ to walk on water.

3. After Peter sought God, he didn’t immediately jump out of the boat. Peter didn’t presume upon God’s answer, but waited for it. The faith that walks on water is faith that waits on God until He answers. Peter didn’t jump into the water until after he had waited on the Lord and heard from Him, and this is precisely where many Christians go wrong in their faith. They ‘jump out of the boat’ without sufficiently waiting on God and end up in trouble.

Satan tempted Christ to take a similar leap of faith in Luke 4:1-13. Satan took Jesus to the top of the temple and challenged Christ to jump off, based on a promise in scripture. But instead of jumping, Christ responded by quoting another verse, from Deut.6:16 – “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.” To select certain promises from the Word of God without heeding the entire written Word often gets us in trouble. We take a rash stand on a certain promise, without taking the whole counsel of Scripture into consideration.

4. When Christ said ‘Come’, Peter put his trust in God and climbed out of the boat. He didn’t let fear or the natural circumstances stop him. Faith is always expressed by obedience to Christ. Peter put his confidence in God and didn’t look at his own inability to walk on water. God isn’t expecting us to do anything on our own: “Apart from Me, you can do nothing.”

5. Finally when Peter got out of the boat, he walked toward Jesus. Peter’s request was to go to Christ, not to walk on water. And yet he did walk on water. Peter was in trouble. Yet as he looked in this storm for God he did the miraculous. He achieved beyond his expectations.

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