Busyness

The very 'busyness' of ordinary life today can make us weary and feel overburdened, and that can be a cumulative experience, which gets harder to bear as we get older.

Over the next few days we are in a frantic rush to finalise our Christmas shopping, getting out those last cards, checking the larder for all the items we need for the Christmas dinner -and on it goes.

But what really grinds us down very often isn't simply hard work, but an underlying weariness of spirit which saps our energy and enthusiasm for life. We can lose our sparkle that we long for each Christmas season and even the simple tasks and challenges, which are meant to be wrapped in love, seem to be too much to face.

If we want to keep a proper perspective and live life to the full, we need time in the midst of our 'busyness' to renew our spirit and draw on the living waters of God's grace and presence which truly refresh and invigorate us. The prophet Isaiah was well aware of that when he said that God 'gives strength to the wearied and strengthens the powerless. Those who hope in the Lord renew their strength. They put out wings like eagles, they run and do not grow weary, walk and never tire.' And Jesus also says to each one of us, 'Come to me all you who are overburdened and I will give you rest.'

Lord, give us the grace not to be discouraged by our weariness but to hear and respond to the coming of Your Son where we will be refreshed and strengthened by His grace and presence. Amen.

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Preparing For Christmas

Suffer The Children

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Christmas Investments

The apostle Paul wrote rather pointedly: 'None of us lives as his own master and none of us dies as his own master... Both in life and in death we are the Lord's.' None of us possesses either our life or our gifts as absolute possessions, but as loans from a generous God who gave us both life and gifts for a specific purpose, namely, to be shared with His family. To decline to share our life and to carry our gifts to those who need them is not only bad stewardship, it is stealing from those for whom the gifts were intended in the first place.

So where do you stand on the gift continuum? Are you sitting on your gifts and hoarding them for some unnamed rainy day, or are you learning the God-like joy of giving your gifts and talents away? Where you stand on this most basic question is probably the key to how and where you'll be spending your eternity, so it will be wise to consider your answer well.

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Choosing The Right Christmas Present

Reaching Out to Children in Need

Suffer The Children

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I Promise

Keeping a promise is rarely easy, and sometimes those who make promises are not equipped to keep them or don't even intend to keep them. The flood of divorces and the torrents of lawsuits that plague our society are eloquent testimony to the fragility of promises and the unlikelihood of many of them ever being kept.

It can render us cynical and disinclined to trust anyone, perhaps even God. So we need to listen to the words of the old man Simeon. Simeon had waited all his life for Jesus' coming, and he'd never ceased trusting that God would be faithful to His promise of a Redeemer. At last the child came, in the arms of His parents, for consecration to the Lord as the Law prescribed. And Simeon gave thanks, 'Now, Master, You can dismiss your servant in peace; You have fulfilled your word....'

God is absolutely faithful in His love of every one of us. Even when we turn away and do not walk with Him, God does not turn from us. He waits and waits and waits.

Trust that. He is waiting for you now, hoping that you will give His love for you an opening. If you do, He will show Himself to you in His own way and in His own time, and He will give you what you need to walk with Him faithfully.

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Preparing For Christmas

When We Need a Little Help

When Traditions Become Weights

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Time is Too Short!

Sixty, they say, is the new forty. Our life expectancy is ever lengthening, so much so that there is talk of postponing pensions to allow for this.

Not surprising then that mortality has ceased to feature among the options of a materialist world! Hip replacements and other spare parts ensure a minimum risk of our being ‘sans eyes, sans teeth, sans everything,’ or at least the appearance thereof.

The isolation of the elderly also helps us in this deceit as they are moved progressively from family homes in the wider community into apartments and then to residential and nursing homes before the exit. Yet the fantasy image sold to those just retiring is still one of eternal leisure - a place in the sun, or at least in the country, and an eternal youthfulness that will never fail them – what Irish folklore calls ‘Tír na nÓg.’

I must seem a bit of a spoilsport then when at funerals I read the Psalmist’s words about the 3 score years and ten, or perhaps 4 score that are our allotted span, and even more so when I suggest subtracting from those allocated 7 or 8 decades the number that we have already used, in full or part - for no one really wants to know that life is so very short or that it slips away so quickly.

This isn’t meant to bring gloom on a Wednesday morning but simply to underline the importance of grasping each passing moment, for time is too short to waste on angers, disagreements, or even on fleeting worldly ambitions.

And that’s why one of my favourite parts of Dickens is where the elderly Scrooge wakes up to find that he is still alive. The bed was his own. The room was his own. Best and happiest of all, the time before him was his own in which to make amends. ‘I will live in the past, the present and the future,’ he says. ‘I am as light as a feather, I am as happy as an angel, as merry as a schoolboy.’

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Gracious God, You have given us the miracle of renewing life. Help us to see that the value of our lives are measured in how we live and not how long. As we await the birth of Your son, may we always be guided by Your gentle breath. Amen

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How Good Are You at Giving Gifts?

Moving From Darkness to Light

Wanted: Part-Time Wife

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Gobbledegook

This morning on telly, the weather presenter rather tongue-in-cheek said ‘I'm 90 percent right—10 percent of the time.’ Of course, that's a ridiculous statement, but some people resort to that type of gobbledegook to cover up a poor record. As proof, all you have to do is listen to some of our world leaders!

However, if you look deep into the Bible you’ll find its prophetic record is extremely accurate. Let's look at a few examples.

The Lord Jesus was born in the city of Bethlehem (Micah 5:2) of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14) at the time specified (Daniel 9:25). Infants in Bethlehem were massacred as prophesied (Jeremiah 31:15). Jesus went down into Egypt and returned (Hosea 11:1). Isaiah foretold Christ's ministry in Galilee (Isaiah 9:1-2). Zechariah predicted His triumphal entry into Jerusalem on a colt (Zechariah 9:9) and His betrayal for 30 pieces of silver (11:12-13). David had never seen a Roman crucifixion, yet in Psalm 22, under divine inspiration, he penned a graphic portrayal of Jesus' death. Isaiah 53 gives a detailed picture of our Lord's rejection, mistreatment, death, and burial. These few prophecies (and there are many more) should impress us with the reliability of the Bible.

As all these predictions have been fulfilled, let us also accept with some reasonable confidence what the Bible says about the future.

He is with you. Always. Until the end of time.

Heavenly Father, help us to trust in Your unchanging word. Though all things shall pass away, Your Word shall stand forever. Amen

How to Choose the Best Christmas Present

Advent- Moving From Darkness to Light

Come Home

The faces of the children in Moldova reveal the suffering they've endured. For so many of them their young lives have been completely devoid of any warmth or love or care or even direction.

Many of them arrive in the night, having been picked up by police - found wandering the streets; lost, confused and hungry. They've been carted across borders, sometimes literally in crates. They have no identification papers and due to the absence of any schooling or education, only what they learned from their parents, who sometimes have virtually no education at all, the child is incapable of even telling where they're from. And it's certain there will have been no missing child report filed with authorities, because it was probably the male figure in the household who sold the child for food, money and alcohol.

When a child arrives, a houseparent instinctively knows not to ask 'where is home?' There isn't one. And when they're brought to us, it's a gut-wrenching fact they seldom show fear on their faces. I'll never forget the words a child said to me several years ago: ' You can't be afraid of something that has already happened.'

So herein begins their new lives. Granted, it may not be a Norman Rockwell image, but it will start with the most important elements of life- the foundations. There is warmth, care, encouragement, the understanding of mutual respect and boundaries - both personal and interactive. And most importantly there will be the most solid foundation of all, the anchor of a home that is built upon Christ's love.

It is that anchor that will carry them the rest of their lives. No matter what the 'bump' or what the challenge, whether they're 10 or 20 years old, the old house will be theirs to come 'home' to. Long after they've been placed with a loving family, and even possibly grow up to have their own children, they will know where they found safety, security, and the message of Christ's love.

I firmly believe we all too easily sanitise the image of Jesus and the children and turn it into an image of softness and bliss. Personally, I agree with Philippe Aries' historical perception of Jesus.

However we may perceive Christ's birth, either through the stories of wise men and stars and so on, or pathetic child born of a disgraced mother in a grotty shed, what is undeniable is that Jesus lived, grew up as an outstanding teacher, healed the sick, embraced the lives of children, and then because He got in the way of the powerful and religious, died a painful death on the cross.

It was then that rumours started appearing that He was alive and many claimed to have seen Him. The church began and the same experience of Resurrection in the lives of millions began to reveal itself. And we pray that all whom we reach in our own lives become able to know and live this message.

Of course, having such an anchor does not mean that our troubles end. The point about an anchor is that it holds the frail vessel when the storms rage around us. Our security lies not in us but in the love, mercy and goodness of God.

Whatever our resolutions and whatever our journey may be for this coming year, may God, who called us out of darkness, into His marvellous light, bless us and fill us with His mission of peace.

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How to Find the Right Christmas Present

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The Children's Story

It's a Wonderful Life

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Embarrassment

There is not one of us who cannot look back on certain moments in our past that make us blush with embarrassment or downright shame. Sometimes it's a matter as simple as a foolish idea that we clung to far too tenaciously and far too long.

Sometimes it's a hurt that we inflicted on someone without even thinking. Sometimes it goes much deeper and involves a profoundly wrong and harmful choice, whose consequences are still reverberating through the years. Whatever the issue, the sadness and shame can run deep and can linger for years, leaving us with the feeling that we'll never be done with it and never leave it behind.

God knows the darkness of soul that our mistakes can burden us with, and the loss of heart as well. He sees into our souls and knows our sins even more clearly than we do. He wants to heal our hearts and to wash away our sins. He wants to make us new, from the inside out, and He can do that if we will let Him. So relax in the Lord. Give Him your heart, and let Him give you a new beginning.

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It's a Wonderful Life

Why is Life so Hard?

How To Be The Best Waitress

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Big World Small Boat

Taking Inventory

When my children were small I would often take them to a park to play. It would all start out in perfect harmony, but it was inevitable that eventually, an argument would ensue. The subject of dispute would invariably be over who was in ‘control’ and who claimed ownership and control of which toy.

How strangely similar this can sound to the relationships between adults and governments.

Wanting what someone else has, to the point of resentment, frustration, and even hatred is no stranger to the human scene. Our Cemeteries and history books are filled with the sad evidence of this.

The gifts given to us here and now are God’s blueprint for us, His guidance for each of us to build a satisfying and productive life. And the best part is that we can make that life with what we’ve got, and without taking or longing for what anyone else has.

When is the last time you took an inventory of what you really have? Have you possibly lost track of being able to identify what makes a difference in your life and what is nothing more than decoration?

If you can’t do it mentally, try writing on something as simple as a sticky pad. What really matters in your life? Name them clearly and give thanks for them. And then use them, share them, as God intended.

You’ll be busy for the rest of your life, and content as well.


Heavenly Father, You have placed such incredible beauty before us and Your hand is seen in everything good. Help us to see our own gifts, which You have given us in ample supply. Guide us so that we may use our gifts to Your glory. We pray this in Your name. Amen

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Have I Told You Lately That I Love You?

Falling In Love At Clapham Junction

Finding Words Of Comfort

When We're Needed Most