Broken until you reach the end of yourself

Have you ever been broken until you feel you reach the end of yourself? This is the time to reach out to God, who provides many rich promises of love, hope and strength in His word. Throughout the ages, millions have trusted in Him and not been disappointed. Perhaps this sounds like too simple a solution in this modern age of complication and sophistication, but I assure you, simplicity is the key to life. Jesus says, "Come to Me, all you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest". Matthew 11:28. Won't you trust Him today?

A promise that God will fill our hearts with joy

I love this Bible promise that God will fill our mouths with laughter and our lips with joy. It tells us that we can rise above our circumstances at all times and no matter how troubled we may feel, God will always be our grounding, and not what is happening around us.

In hours of discouragement, God is our encouragement...

This is such a beautiful poem by Helen Steiner Rice and I have always loved those first two lines, though the whole poem is so powerful:

Sometimes we feel uncertain, 

and unsure of everything,

Afraid to make decisions, 

Dreading what the day will bring,

We keep wishing it were possible 

to dispel all fear and doubt,

and to understand more readily 

just what life is all about,

God has given us the answers 

which too often go unheeded,

but if we search His promises 

we’ll find everything we need

and seek, to lift our faltering spirits 

and renew our courage too,

for there is absolutely nothing too much 

for God to do,

For the Lord is our Salvation 

and our Strength 

in every fight we fight.

Our Redeemer, and Protector, 

our eternal Guiding Light,

He has promised to sustain us, 

He’s our Refuge from all harms,

and underneath this Refuge 

are His Everlasting Arms,

So cast your burdens on Him, 

seek His counsel when distressed,

and go to Him for comfort 

whenever you’re lonely and oppressed,

For God is our encouragement 

in trouble and in trials,

and in suffering and in sorrow 

He will turn our tears to smiles.

God's special phone number!

Today is Friday – I love Fridays, the doorway to the weekend and freedom! 

My daughter is writing a big exam today – 4 hours! She was feeling quite jittery and I realised an important thing: I had not been praying for her success. So I prayed, I asked God to help her in her exams. I think I forget to pray sometimes. And yet God Himself calls us to be better than that – He says that we do not have because we do not ask.  At the same time, He reassures us, saying “Call unto me, and I will show you great and mighty things, things you do not know” (Jeremiah 33:3). 

Some preachers refer to Jeremiah 33:3 as God’s phone number, that’s pretty cool in my books! Knowing that God is there – just a phone call away! 

Be blessed today!

DEPRESSION

Sometimes life can just be so depressing, especially when things do not go our way. I read once of a person who just had three words as the cure for depression "rise above it". Rise above it, rise above it, rise above it! What comforting words in times of sadness and sorrow, to rise above it and fight to face the next day. Jesus is so great, He gives us the kind of peace that we can only get from knowing Him. The peace that passes all understanding.
It is only up to us to reach out to Him and seek the comfort that He can provide. He is so gracious.
There is no tomorrow without hope. There is no future without hope. But where can hope come from? I believe it comes from trusting our Saviour, I mean, putting all our trust in Him, not leaving some behind, just like how the toothpaste tube always has 'just a little' left which can not be squeezed out, except with huge determination!
So this is my message for today. There is no shadow of turning with Him who loves us unconditionally. Through loving Him, trusting Him unconditionally, placing all our burdens on Him, we can handle the burdens of life, the depressions of life, all the minor worries and sadnesses! Oh, everything! In fact, He is not called Omnipotent and Omnipresent for nothing!
May these words bless and encourage you.

The rose I used to create the picture below is courtesy of www.wallpapersafari.com

“Everyone needs compassion, the kindness of a Saviour, Our God is mighty to save”

“Everyone needs compassion, the kindness of a Saviour, Our God is mighty to save” (Hillsongs)
Needing
We think that we do not need to depend on anyone, as is the modern trend (of which I am no exception!), but it is surprising that we actually do need others! God made us to be in relationship with each other, and it is from the outpouring of our love to Him that we are able to love others. It is impossible, absolutely impossible that we can go through our lives consistently depending on ourselves and still prosper. Is that how you got to where you are today? I doubt it! You had to depend on someone – this is what John Donne says:
“No man is an island entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as any manner of thy friends or of thine own were; any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind. And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.”We need each other and there is no denying it!
CompassionMore than that, we need our Saviour, we need His compassion in our lives! He said: “Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give thee rest” (Matthew 11:28). We do not have to strive for His compassion, as we would have to strive to gain the compassion of people whose hearts are merciless and cold. His heart is warm and encompasses us – His mercy surrounds us – He gives us the love that we do not deserve to receive because we are so sinful. He gives us the love that we all beg for and need from the very foundations of our being.
Kindness
Acts of kindness are rare these days because we are filled with mistrust as a result of bad deeds done to us in our lives. And yet what does a little kindness take away from you? In fact, I can bet that kindness actually adds to you, I can bet that a million acts of random kindness could change the world! Kindness in itself from another human being is tainted because we have the attitude that they are doing it somehow for their own self-benefit, but the Saviour has such kindness that it is called ‘lovingkindness’ in the Bible. When I think of that word ‘lovingkindness’, a picture of beauty comes to my mind, a picture of true love, with no secret motives behind it, like a soft pink rosebud with drops of dew glinting on it in the first hours of daylight. This rosebud, the love of our Saviour, does not change or become affected by the environment around it. It rests calm and peaceful in the midst of turmoil and radiates a sweet aroma of love and gentleness.
We need the kindness and compassion of our Saviour, the flow of tender love from God which radiates our hearts and from there shines its light on the lives of others.
Yes, it’s true, our God is mighty in compassion, kindness and love, He is indeed mighty to save!

You are precious in God’s eyes

“You are fearfully and wonderfully made.” Ps 139:14
I was thinking of what we say outwardly to others and also what we say inwardly to ourselves. The former is a reflection of the latter.
The things we say inwardly, or self-talk as it is known in psychology, are very much a reflection of our self-esteem. For instance, if you are often telling yourself how stupid you are, how nobody loves you, how meaningless your life is, the fruit of this kind of thinking comes out in the way we react to others. Sometimes even the things that other people do or say have the effect of confirming this negativity which we carry within ourselves. An example, somebody at work implies that you are careless, immediately this remark goes straight to the negative feelings you have and it comes out as it's true, I am a useless nobody and I can't even do my work right.
The resultant effect is that the nothingness we feel, the emptiness, the sadness, the lack of understanding of our existence, become heavier and heavier.
But in God, who says that we are fearfully and wonderfully made, we do not need to carry around such negativity. Maybe that other person is carrying around a bundle of hurt just like you are and they make that thoughtless comment that brings your heart right down. Give yourself a break. When you find yourself saying these negative things inwardly, turn it around to the positive and the truth, because you know it’s not true that you are worthless – God says you are very valuable and precious in His eyes. It’s not true that there is no hope for you – God says that our hope is in Him - "so the helpless has hope" Jeremiah 5:16.
It’s not true that you are not loved – God says that He has loved you with an everlasting love ("I have loved you with an everlasting love, therefore I have drawn you with lovingkindness" Jeremiah 31:3).
These are not just empty words, they are special promises that God has made. And our God, praise His Name!, is so great and His promises are not like our promises. Our promises are just like our lives, a breath, a wave washing over the shore and then disappearing into the great big sea. But God's promises are everlasting, through the ages HE has proven Himself true to His word.
So why not put your trust in Him, dear friend, dear downtrodden, sad, lonely friend, and ask Him to take the hurts that you feel, which you have been accumulating throughout your whole life, and ask Him to renew your spirit. Often when I feel down I think of those precious words “I am a new creation, no more in condemnation” ("Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new."
2 Corinthians 5:17). Just as I know I am a new creation, I urge you to put these timeless words into your spirit and to put your trust in Him today.
May these words strengthen you.