TRUST

Isaiah 26
3 You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.
4 Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD GOD is an everlasting rock.

Trusting in The Lord is a truly wonderful way to live. Take a moment to consider what it really means to trust. It is casting EVERY care upon Jesus, literally throwing them off of you and on to Him. It is EVERY weight and care given to Jesus. It is yielding ALL responsibility into His almighty hands! It is FAITH in His Goodness, Mercy and Love!
Now consider what are you left with. HALLELUJAH!! Perfect peace ruling in your heart!! Joy Unspeakable and full of glory!! Rejoicing evermore and gratefulness in all things!! The freedom and liberty to look to others and serve them!! Oh, give this MUCH thought fellow believer! Oh how much Christ has won for us!! Oh how great is our salvation!! Oh hallelujah! Bless His Name!!
Oh what a precious promise to those who choose to trust. The Lord keeps them! He keeps their hearts and minds in PERFECT peace. A peace full and complete. A peace without question, doubt or fear. It is not earned in daily ritual or claimed by empty repetitions, nor is it simply a mindset to acquire. It is simply a choice!

Colossians 3
15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.
16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

LET His peace rule!! LET His Word live!! Oh, brother/sister the choice is very much with you!!
Faith is a choice. You can choose right now to believe, repent and then rejoice! Or you can choose to keep carrying and living under the weight of your own cares, fears, sin and shame. Choose to enjoy Christ or endure Christianity. Choose to trust your life to Jesus and let Him abide and reign in your heart, the alternative is frustration, anxiety, lust, shame and the wages of sin, death.
Oh, may we learn to truly live in trust! Oh how wonderful life with Jesus truly is!! Abide in His presence, throw off all your cares onto Him and live in the Joy, Liberty and Peace of trusting Jesus Christ, the Almighty, Creator and Saviour!

The Lord Takes Note

Malachi 3:16
Then those who feared the Lord talked often one to another; and the Lord listened and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him of those who reverenced and worshipfully feared the Lord and who thought on His name.

What incredible, precious blessing and comfort is promised to those who fear God and fellowship in His presence. It is amazing to think that The Lord takes note of the times we have delighted in recounting His testimonies and promises. He pays attention when we come together and encourage one another in His Word. Not only can we enjoy our hearts burning within us with joy as we fellowship but The Lord is actively listening and sharing in our joy! HALLELUJAH!!
They spoke often to each other! They delighted in reminding themselves and each other of the goodness and faithfulness of God. Their conversation was not about their own righteousness or the life of others. They did not give their words to criticism or complaint nor did they glorify a man. Their conversation was not earthly but heavenly, it was not fleshly but spiritual. They spoke together of The Lord and His testimonies, His victories and His provisions! It wasn’t something they only mentioned in church or when they were asked to teach, rather it was the joy of their heart and the outpouring of their personal meditation. They gloried in The Lord! They were looking unto Him, their creator, the author and finisher of their faith!
It is precious that we can share our burdens with one another and confess our sins to one another. Confession and transparency are important, hard conversations are absolutely necessary and vital to healthy fellowship. But let the conversation always come to Christ! May we always get to HIM and HIS great Salvation and the beauty of HIS Holiness! It is vitally important to share one another’s burdens… But we do so with hope! We do so with HIS JOY! We talk to one another of JESUS CHRIST! Our Saviour who has forgiven each one of us MUCH!! Hallelujah! Bless His name! Thank you Jesus!

Matthew 12
35 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.
36 But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.
37 For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Oh, may our hearts produce good fruit for our creator. May we pour out in conversation and conduct the good fruits of HIS Life, HIS Spirit and HIS Word! Let us encourage one another brothers and sisters! Share Jesus with each other. Enjoy HIM together! That is where He is most greatly glorified!
Oh may we learn to be careful with our tongues. May our conversation be always in God’s presence, with His listening ear in mind. May we speak with JOY and may we speak with reverence.
The Lord is listening and He is taking notes!

Why Are You Fearful?

Turner, Joseph Mallord William; Fishermen at Sea; Tate; http://www.artuk.org/artworks/fishermen-at-sea-117749

Psalm 42
5 Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him For the help of His countenance.

Twice in this psalm, and once again in Psalm 43, the writer asks his soul, ‘WHY are you cast down? Why is your peace gone?!’ It is an exasperated question. He is not just curious for the answer, but is asking ‘What GOOD reason do you have to feel this frustration, fear, depression?! What has distracted you?’
The exasperation is emphasised in that he already knows the remedy to his troubled heart. He chastens his own soul and reminds himself of The Lord! Hallelujah! With the presence and provision of The Lord so close, why is my soul troubled? How can that be? But the solution is not in investigating the trouble of the heart, the solution is to turn all attention and focus on The Lord!

Psalm 42
5 … You hope in God and wait expectantly for Him, for I shall yet praise Him For the help of His presence.

You hope in God!! His answer is to tell his soul to remember The Lord and to TRUST in Him! Remember His testimonies and His faithfulness, remember His promises, remember His great Love with which He loves us, remember that He is unchanging and true, and by faith, WAIT EXPECTANTLY on His deliverance and salvation!
The psalmist says hope NOW! He will praise NOW! He will rejoice in the victory now! He will wait EXPECTANTLY!! With such an expectant hope we can praise Him NOW for coming victory! Hallelujah! We can rejoice in the victory that’s already won!
By FAITH the writer already had the blessing! He would continue to praise and rejoice, despite his circumstance, because he truly trusted in The Lord! He chose to believe God and utterly yielded the outcome of his life to The Lord and surrendered to His will!
His flesh was suffering, his world was turning upside down, his heart was broken, everything was in turmoil… but his heart, his soul would look expectantly to The Lord and rejoice in His presence and Salvation! In the middle of the storm He chose to look to The Lord and rejoice!

Matthew 8
23 Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him.
24 And suddenly a violent storm arose on the sea, so that the boat was being covered by the waves; but Jesus was sleeping.
25 And the disciples went and woke Him, saying, “Lord, save us, we are going to die!”
26 But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.

His disciples followed Him. Notice that detail. Jesus was with them. They were walking with The Lord, following His steps, living in His presence, yet the storm came! A life altering, life-threatening storm! Completely beyond their capability or control. The Good Shepherd will not always lead His sheep to the green pastures and still waters. Sometimes He will lead His sheep the difficult way, because He is the Good Shepherd and He knows how to lead His sheep.
The disciples were mostly fishermen. They would have done what they could to steady the boat. They tried… But it was when they came to the end of themselves and simply cried to Jesus that Salvation was realised! Our flesh naturally wants control, order, comfort but LIFE will only ever come from the Life giver! He alone is our EVERYTHING!
Then Jesus asks them, “Why are you fearful?”. The question is a similar tone to the writer in Psalm 42. Why?! What good reason do you have to be afraid? I am with you! It is a powerful lesson to learn that whilst we are going in the way that Jesus leads, we need fear NO evil! Our outward circumstance may seem dire, life-threatening even but Jesus asks “Why are you fearful?”
JESUS WAS SLEEPING! HIS LIFE WAS PEACEFULLY RESTING! Jesus is utterly yielded to the Father’s will! Completely trusting in Him! Jesus demonstrates, to His disciples and to us, the life that we can have in Him. There is a peace that passes understanding to be enjoyed when we truly trust our lives to The Father’s will.
Cast yourself upon Jesus’ goodness! If we truly trust then like Paul we can truly

1 Thessalonians 5
16 Rejoice always,
17 pray without ceasing,
18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

These are not commands that we are to obey but liberties that we can enjoy in Christ as we completely surrender ourselves to HIS will and His leading. If we truly trust in our Lord Jesus Christ we will be free to REJOICE ALWAYS!! We will pray ALWAYS! We will be so incredibly grateful for how He proves Himself faithful and true time and time and time again!! Faith ends in sight but it leads to love! Oh how we will love Him when we truly choose to trust Him. Hallelujah!
Brother, sister, why are you fearful? Why are you downcast? Why are you frustrated? Why are you without peace? Turn your eyes upon The Lord, look to Jesus! Hope you in God! Christ is in the vessel! His life is at rest! Be utterly yielded and trusting in The Father’s Will for His Will is Life and Life more abundantly for His disciples! Those who follow after Christ can rest as He does no matter how the storm rages! We can rest and rejoice in Him! Hallelujah!

Father?

Galatians 3
26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.
27 For as many of you as were baptised into Christ have put on Christ.
28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
29 And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

⁠Paul is writing to people who were once labelled: Jew, Greek, Gentile, Male, Female, Slave, Free… But now they are made ONE IN CHRIST JESUS!! (Ephesians 2:11-22) They are ALL Abraham’s seed!! All God’s children of faith! Not divided, not joined but made ONE! In John 17 Jesus does not pray for a bloodline but a faithline. All have been adopted! All are brought into the family! All have the privilege to call God FATHER! It is only faith that can begin to understand and appreciate the application this. All of us sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. Not “Christians”, not “Jews”, not “gentiles” but ONE in Christ! Hallelujah! What a faithful, consistent, unchanging Gospel!

Galatians 4
4 But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law,
5 to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.
6 And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!”
7 Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

We have here a beautiful picture of the trinity: GOD THE FATHER, sent THE SPIRIT of HIS SON into our hearts!! Oh, let’s give that some thought! The Spirit of HIS Son whom He sent to bear His wrath in MY place because of MY SIN so that I/we can call Him FATHER!! Oh praise His mighty name!! Truly this is the Glory of God! This is the Gospel! This is God’s GLORY!! The Father has sent the Spirit of His Son into OUR hearts so that we might call Him Father! Hallelujah!
HIS Spirit cries out to HIS Father. Do we recognise that cry in our hearts? The cry of HIS life? The cry of a child in love with their father?
Consider here the parable of the prodigal. To be His slave in God’s Kingdom would be blessed enough!! But we are HIS SONS!

Luke 15
17 “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!
18 I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you,
19 and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.”’
20 “And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.
21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet.
23 And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry;
24 for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ And they began to be merry.

We are so undeserving, but we are so incredibly blessed!! Daily! It is right to feel unworthy, but it is sin to not accept The Father’s invitation!
May we have the faith to live as His child. Not as a slave to law, not as fatherless and undisciplined, but as SONS OF GOD!
”If you go to God only by obedience, you are more slave than child.” The servant serves in the master’s household, but the child enjoys the Father’s embrace. The servant may please his master, but the child is the delight of His Father! The master provides for His servants, but He lovingly longs for and blesses His children! It is right fear God and to come before Him with reverence and humility but you will find that you pray very different when He is your Father as opposed to your Master.
Consider the joy of a child, the confidence of a child, the love, trust and admiration of a child. Consider also the dependence of a child, the obedience of a child, the beauty of a wise son. The Spirit of The Son Cries out FATHER!! It is His desire that we call upon Him! Call upon your Father for help, for HIS Life, for HIS Wisdom and blessing. Cry out to The Father to establish you in His Word and in His testimony! Enjoy Him!! Enjoy His love, His abundance and His presence!!

The Beauty of Holiness

Psalm 29
2 … worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.

The beauty of Holiness is Jesus Christ! He is the fulfilment of The Law! He the Altogether Lovely One. HIS Life fulfils The Law, HIS Life abhors sin, HIS Life loves, serves, obeys, surrenders and trusts The Father! It is HIS Life within the believers who are clothed with HIS righteousness that worships The Lord in the beauty of holiness.

Psalm 93:5
“…Holiness adorns Your house, O LORD, forever.”

Holiness adorns those with whom He dwells, those who are His living temples. People altogether set apart unto Him, circumcised of heart, abhorring evil and loving His Word, allowing HIS Life and HIS Love to flow through them. Holiness is utterly dependant and completely yielded to The Father, filled with His Holy Spirit and so naturally produces HIS fruit!
Holiness is rooted in Christ’s humility. It is a life of faith naturally producing works/fruits of faith. It is Christ within, living through, who is demonstrated in the way that the believer lives. Holiness is the fruit of His life, it can be mimicked by legalism but the beauty of holiness is Christ only and always!

Revelation 4
8 …and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.

I cannot try to convey or explain the Holiness of God but it is amazing to meditate on. The word holy, at its root, means set apart. Truly our God is altogether set apart from creation! He is altogether above and beyond anything man can grasp or imagine! He is altogether Sovereign over all things, He is Light, He is Truth, He is without spot or blemish, He is The One True Living God!
This is holiness and we are to worship The Lord in the beauty of that holiness. Jesus only is the beauty of holiness! How absurd it is to think that we could produce any kind of beauty through self effort in the flesh! However, “through faith”, through faithful obedience God’s Word and faithfully abiding in Him, The Spirit of God through our flesh produces the fruit, the beauty of Christ’s Holiness, HIS Life, His Heart, His Testimony! Hallelujah!
Legalism tries to mimic holiness but is rooted in pride and the elevation of flesh. It works hard to maintain standards addressing the appearance of the outward man. It focuses on the letter and on the keeping of laws in self and corporately in others. It is strife, contention, prejudice and pride. There is a great temptation to teach the law, it often produces quick results, but it does not produce Life. It is flesh breeding flesh and will only produce death!
Legalism is pride in the flesh and pride, like bad body odour, can sometimes be hard to detect in ourselves but surely stinks to others! Here are some considerations to help identify/discern our hearts.

May our lives be marked by HIS holiness, by HIS love that fulfils the law, not the flesh which strives to keep it. May we be vessels for the outflowing of HIS LIFE and the fruit of HIS SPIRIT! May we tend to our own root and trust The Holy Spirit to produce HIS Fruit in us and others. It is HIS LIFE so serve The Lord in the beauty of submission to HIS Life!

Galatians 2
18 For if I build again those things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor.
19 For I through the law died to the law that I might live to God.
20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
21 I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.”