from fat to thin

Thursday 15 September 2011

Do the four ...

... prayer often, read your scriptures daily, go to church and pay an honest tithe.

Maybe this blog should be do the one, but which one? 

Up until last summer my eldest daughter Grace, hadn't attended church for sometime. In fact she didn't want anything to do with church and if i happened to mention something to do with church i would get that side-ways grimace, which said 'no, don't bother'. But last year things changed, she changed, it was her decision to change but i know God helped her in her decision.

For six years i didn't, speak about church and/or God to her. Or so it seemed, but my heartfelt prayers went up every night. Some is love, some in desperation and some in anger but they went, one way or another on her behalf. So maybe i should leave prayer as number one? 

We are counselled to pray often, pray in our hearts, in our closets, in secret, with loud voices of praise but the message is the same whatever way you chose, pray, pray, pray. God is listening and if he seems a little slow to answer remember our time is not his time, but know that He is always listening and will always answer. There are times when i have prayed over and over again for the same thing and waited long for the answer and even when the answer came it wasn't the one i desired, but then comes acceptance and sometimes that's hard to do but then untold, innumerable blessings descend.

But how do i know these things? I read God's holy words day by day. You cannot teach what you do not know and you cannot know what you have not read and learnt. I will be the first to admit that finding even my favourite scripture can sometimes take a little time. However we need to know for ourselves the blessings that come through knowing God and living his commandments and we can only do that by reading scripture.

After a world-weary week i only have to spend a few hours at church with like-minded people who speak the same language to know i am loved by God. That although life may not be what i would like it to be i am not alone, i am not forgotten and i am not invisible to Him. To me church on a Sunday is my opportunity to give back, to the God's church and his people by sharing his words and the my testimony of the truthfulness of his words with others. I count myself lucky to be able to teach and humble to know that He guides my every word.

And number four, that's simple - 'Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.' (Malachi 3:8). Then come the blessings - ...prove me herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if i will not open the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it (vs 10) ... And i will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground (vs 11) ... All nations shall call you blessed (vs 12). What more do you need?


Repeat after me - God loves me - again and again until you feel it in your very core. Now live like you mean it.


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