You are NOT your own.

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship , to the breaking of bread and to prayer . Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles . All the believers were together and had everything in common . They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people . And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. Acts 2:42‭-‬47 NIV This is an awe inspiring piece of scripture, a picture of what many people would strive to accomplish within the church. It would appear to be what the ideal church would look like, yet the early church was not perfect, they did have imperfect people with imperfect stuff, Paul and his fellow apostles had to address faulty beliefs, behaviors, heresy etc.  To many in our ...

 We are given this command in the word of God. “Be holy , because I am holy .” 1 Peter 1:16 NIV Not sure about you but I often find myself thinking that this is a really huge ask. I mean how do we even be Holy like Jesus or God? He is the ultimate version of holiness, surely we are unable to emulate that? Partly I think is our understanding of what Holy means, in our understanding it's to be Pure, sinless, innocent, without fault or failing. I am not saying that it should not include all of those elements but as humans we can't even pretend to be all of that all the time, and I am sure that was not God's intention when he gave the command.  The actual definition of Holy is " Dedicated or consecrated to God or a religious purpose; sacred ." This makes a bit more sense, at least I can try to be fully dedicated to God who is ultimately "exalted or worthy of complete devotion as one perfect in goodness and righteousness" He Jesus is all that and so much mo...

Before I knew about blogging I published some articles on fb that were limited by the number of words or characters you could use. I have now reformatted them for this platform, and I am encouraged to share them now many years later, they also form part of my story and building of my character. I pray that these things are true in my life and are useful to others. True witness Cultivate your own relationship with God, but don’t impose it on others. You’re fortunate if your behavior and your belief are coherent. But if you’re not sure, if you notice that you are acting in ways inconsistent with what you believe—some days trying to impose your opinions on others, other days just trying to please them—then you know that you’re out of line. If the way you live isn’t consistent with what you believe, then it’s wrong. Romans 14:22‭-‬23 MSG The last sentence of this verse is weighty, and so true and valid, for me it clearly speaks to trying to live a credible, upright and righteous seeking li...

Before I knew about blogging I published some articles on fb that were limited by the number of words or characters you could use. I have now reformatted them for this platform, and I am encouraged to share them now many years later, they also form part of my story and building of my character. I pray that these things are true in my life and are useful to others Prov 23: 7 says as a man thinks in his heart so is he. We need to have a right thinking of God, lest we reduce him to a simple idol, something we can control, or call on when we need him. However that's not how it works, we are the creatures, not the Creator , only God qualifies as that.  His ways are higher than our ways, his thoughts are higher than our thoughts . We dare not reduce God to this, as it makes God more into our image, than us in his image, he is Supreme master, we are in humble and full submission to His Will, Authority and Purposes, or we will walk confused all of our days. If you want to find your l...

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you . No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you , you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing . If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit , showing yourselves to be my disciples. “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you ...

Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? Matthew 6:27 NIV This is a question posed by Jesus, during the famous sermon on the mount. What he is asking in other words is by worrying can anyone make any actual difference to the current situation someone may find themselves in?  Modern day life it would seem to promote the stress, worry, anxiety on a daily basis, there is so much to be anxious or worry about. Load shedding, lack of water, power outages, financial burden's, joblessness, what does the future hold for me and my loved ones? On the surface it seems absurd for Jesus to say don't worry, I mean how not to?  However I observe that the anxiety comes from the inability to control the stuff that is happening in my life. We are control freaks in so many ways, and want to control everything around us, to have all of our ducks in a row, and think of having a plan for every eventuality . Yet so much is Not under our direct control, despite our deep desir...