I will set you free from fear

As I sat down at my table to spend time with God this morning, this verse came to mind...

"If you obey my teaching, you are really my disciples; you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free" (John 8:31-32).

In wondering what He meant by the truth, I was then led to another verse...

"I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one goes to the Father except by me" (John 14:6).

So I will know the truth, that is Jesus, and he will set me free. Ok, so how do I come to know Jesus? John 8:31-32 told me that I had to obey his teaching and be his disciple. What does Jesus want me to do?

My mind was led to the next chapter...

"My commandment is this: love one another, just as I love you (John 15:12).

If I love others just like Jesus loves me, I am his disciple. I will know the truth, that is Jesus, and He will set me free.

What will he set me free from? Many things, I am sure, but my mind was led to a particular verse...

There is no fear in love; perfect love drives out all fear. So then, love has not been made perfect in anyone who is afraid, because fear has to do with punishment (1 John 4:18).

If you love others, just like I love you, you are really my disciples; you will know me, and I will set you free from fear.

I was really blessed by my conversation with God this morning and I hope you are too! :)

Are you paying attention?

A few weeks ago I was having a shower when God spoke to me and told me that I would not die, but live and proclaim what the Lord had done (Psalm 118:17).

Woah!

Today, as I was going about my day God gave me this message:

God has brought you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Now you must tell all the wonderful things he has done (1 Peter 2:9).

Wow! Okay... so here I am!

Friends, I have passed through the valley of the shadow of death. I have doubted God, but even when I didn't sense it, God was loving me. He may not have been expressing his love in words, but he was in actions. He sent me people to love and protect and help me. Now the shadows have lifted and my faith has been restored. I am now going forth proclaiming what the Lord has done.

Friends, God never stops loving us. Sometimes we just aren't paying attention and are expecting him to show his love to us in our way.

The Great Reset

“‘Count off seven sabbath years—seven times seven years—so that the seven sabbath years amount to a period of forty-nine years. Consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you; each of you is to return to your family property and to your own clan. - Leviticus 25:8,10 NIV

Perhaps the people had made bad choices that forced them to sell their property. Perhaps it had forced them even to sell themselves and their families into slavery. Perhaps the lives of people had been negatively impacted by the choices of their family members. Was everything lost?

No, every 50 years, in the year of jubilee, there was a great reset. Liberty was proclaimed. Property was returned. Families were reunited. It was as if God was saying: 

Your family members made bad choices which negatively impacted you. I am giving you a fresh start. Will you follow their example or will you make different choices? The choice is yours.

How encouraging is that?!

I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments. - Exodus 20:5-6 NIV

There is hope!

Who is God? What is love?

Who is God?

What is love?

I've been thinking about these questions for awhile now.

1 Corinthians 13:4-8 describes what love is, and in 1 John 4:8 John tells us that God is love, so...

God is patient.

God is kind.

God is not jealous.

God is not conceited.

God is not proud.

God is not ill-mannered.

God is not selfish.

God is not irritable.

God does not keep a record of wrongs.

God is not happy with evil.

God is happy with the truth.

God never gives up.

God's faith never fails.

God's hope never fails.

God's patience never fails.

God is eternal.

God is love.

Let's think about that.

To give credit where credit is due. 

These ideas I got from you:

https://tabletalk.online/02-what-and-who-is-god/

Where Does Love Come From?

Throughout history, people have often asked: Why is there so much pain and suffering?  If God is love, if God is all powerful, why does he allow so much pain and suffering?

I have been one of those people, and I have also asked: Why do some people experience a lot of pain and suffering and other people only little?

I couldn't make sense of it all and so, for the most part, I ignored the issue.

When I was coming out of the days of my deepest doubt.  When I no longer denied the existence of God but still questioned the nature of his character, a profound question emerged and burned into my consciousness:

Where does love come from?

Has that question ever occurred to you?  I have never heard anyone ask it before.

The Bible says that "God is love" (1 John 4:8).  Love, therefore, must come from God.  That's one explanation.  That is one supporting point for the existence of a God of love, for love has to come from somewhere.  How else can we explain the source of love?

Making Australia One

Shortly after nine, on the morning of April 25, a woman unobtrusively and unpretentiously stepped from the crowd and laid out the aboriginal flag at the foot of the flag pole.  A flag pole that was located by the cenotaph and which was flying the Australian flag at half mast.  Without a word, the woman melted back into the crowd.  A few minutes later, she was brought forward by an official and was asked to remove the flag.  This she meekly did, before quietly laying it on the cenotaph beside the wreaths.  Once again she was asked to move the flag.  Once again she gathered it up.  This time she took it with her as she resumed her position in the crowd.  She was crying.  She was hurt.  I, observing the scene from my place in the band, felt her pain.  I was hurt too.

Shock froze me to my seat.  I couldn't believe the injustice shown towards that woman.  My heart went out in empathy towards the woman.  I wanted to act.  I wanted to speak.  I was frozen.  Anger welled up in me towards the official who had shown such disrespect towards this woman and the people that she represented.  By her actions she was seeking to honour the Aboriginals who fought and died in the wars.  She had respect, and she was showing that respect.  How she was treated was wrong, very wrong.  I wish that I had been able to get up and show my support to that woman.  I didn't speak then, but I am speaking now.

As the crowd dispersed, the words and music of "We are One" rang out, adding insult to injury.  Instead of just playing "We are One", we need to BE one.  We need to be inclusive and respectful.  We need to listen and act.  We can't change the past, but we can, and must, change the present and the future.  

I believe it is about time that we create a new flag for the country of Australia, incorporating Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the design process so that we honour them and thus take another step towards making Australia one.

Self-sufficiency

Growing up, I had a dream to get married, have a large family, live on a property, grow my own food and basically be as self-sufficient as I could possibly be.  I didn't want to have to rely on other people any more than I absolutely had to.  Now that I'm an adult, my goals have changed and are continuing to change.

Lately, I've been thinking about this idea of self-sufficiency.  Is it really something to aspire to?  We live in an integrated society, but is that a good thing or a bad thing?  We have farmers, manufacturers, shops, cleaners, hospitals, schools, etc.  Maybe being part of a wider community is a good thing.  It enables everyone to focus on developing and utilising their unique skills.  I'm grateful for all the members of my community.  At the moment, I am particularly grateful for the people who repair roads and remove rubbish.

The other morning I went for a walk.  I have a policy for my walks - walk mindfully.  That means not listening to any music or podcasts or stories.  It means immersing myself in my environment and actively seeking to be aware of all my surroundings through my senses.  As I walked this morning, I was noticing that the new leaves on the hedges that I was passing were a lighter shade of green than the older leaves.  These thoughts transitioned into thinking about how well the plants survived the flood.  The grass didn't bat an eyelid after being submerged under metres of flood water.  The plants don't worry about what is happening around them, they just keep on living as best they can.  They can't do this on their own however.  They need some water at least, and sunshine, and carbon dioxide.  They rely on other things.  Nature is not self-sufficient.  The different elements of nature rely on one another for the things that they need.  They give what they can and they take what they need.