Category: Sue’s Views

Sue’s Views

After 8 months of lockdowns and isolation ….. we have probably all developed some new habits. We’ve learned to do life alone or in our bubble. Hopefully by now we’ve met with others face to face …… but our contact has mostly been through technology. This Sunday ….. our church gets to actually meet again. Some can’t wait! Others may be hesitant. We’ve grown accustomed to watching the service online ….. or meeting in a small group. But God’s Church is better together! It’s time to come out from behind those walls!

‘And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.’ Hebrews 10:25

Sue’s Views

Are you feeling insignificant? Do you feel like you just blend in ….. while others stand out? There will always be someone in your life that steals the show! They are more beautiful ….. more outgoing ….. attract people when they walk in the room. Comparison is a dangerous game. It results in attempts to find fault with the other person to make us look better. It produces striving to be like someone else instead of being the person God made us. And ….. worst of all ….. it tells God He doesn’t know what He is doing and accuses Him of being unfair. God doesn’t compare us on our outward appearance ….. He sees our hearts! A beautiful heart ….. cantered on God ….. produces a beautiful person. 

 ‘’The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7

Sue’s Views 

I love autumn! I think it gets a bad rap because it reminds us that winter is coming ….. but autumn is a season all on its own. I was never very great at science ….. but apparently there’s a lot of chemistry happening in those trees! The reduced sunlight and temperature cause the high concentration of chlorophyll (that’s what makes the leaves green) ….. to break down and to reveal the colours of the secondary pigments that were hidden. 

I guess it’s like that in life. We don’t always see what’s really inside us until we go through some situations that force a change. When we get out of our comfort zone ….. when things get a bit darker and colder ….. we discover there are other ‘colours’ within us. Beautiful colours! Maybe you’ve discovered a new hobby ….. a new way of doing a business ….. a new way of communicating ….. a new way to adapt and build upon old ideas. 

Dear Lord, thank you for the different seasons in life. Please help us to be willing to allow the changes to bring out the best in us so we can use the gifts You’ve given us to bring You glory. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Sue’s Views

After months of takeaway coffees outside ….. today we get the choice to sit inside! Choice is a complicated thing. It comes with tremendous responsibility. When I make a choice ….. it’s not just about me. It’s about those around me who might make different choices. Does my choice cause offence to them? If so ….. do I adapt my choice ….. or do I expect them to? Freedom of choice is not about getting my way ….. it’s being free to choose what is right. As all parents know ….. sometimes choices have to be made that are not very popular. As we move on from here ….. let’s consider one another. The funny thing is ….. I still prefer to take my coffee outside in the sun! But that might change in the coming months!

‘And if another believer is distressed by what you eat, you are not acting in love if you eat it. Don’t let your eating ruin someone for whom Christ died.’

Romans 14:15

Dear Lord, Thank you for the freedom to choose ….. but help me choose what is right and loving. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Sue’s Views

I’ve always wanted to live by the sea! When I looked out my bedroom window this morning ….. I thought God had answered my prayer. But as reality set in ….. I realised my sea was an illusion! Before long ….. my misty sea disappeared ….. the ships’ masts became power pylons ….. and the rocks became trees. Things aren’t always what they appear to be. Sometimes we ‘see’ what we want to see. Sometimes people will fool us into seeing what suits them. That’s why we need to see with more than our physical eyes. That’s why God sent His Spirit to live with us. He enables us to see and make sense of the world around us.

‘But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.’ John 16:13

Thank you, Father, for sending your Holy Spirit to guide ….. help ….. and protect us on this journey through life. Teach us how to hear His voice and see through His eyes. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Sue’s Views

Can you believe it’s April already? I was just looking up the origin of April Fools Day. It seems to be a bit vague but the commonest one is that it started when Pope Gregory XIII introduced the Gregorian calendar in the 1500s and decided the year would start on 1st January. Previously the new year had started on 1st April due to the vernal equinox ….. and people who were reluctant to change were referred to as April Fools! It’s funny how we continue to do things without understanding why! 

The Book of Proverbs has a lot to say about wisdom and foolishness. 

Here’s a couple to digest and decide which camp you belong to!

Proverbs 29:11

‘A fool always loses his temper,

But a wise man holds it back.’

Proverbs 17:28

‘Even a fool, when he keeps silent, is considered wise;

When he closes his lips, he is considered prudent.’

Prayer: Dear Lord, Thank you that your Word gives me wisdom and understanding. Please help me to make wise choices today and not foolish ones. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Sue’s Views

It seems crazy that a country like New Zealand has a timber shortage! But with recent timber mill closures ….. high demand for new builds ….. and exports to China ….. we find ourselves in this predicament! You do sometimes wonder where priorities lie! 

Maybe you have had to face a job loss that has been your source of income ….. and you are now willing to work but can’t.

Maybe the demands on you are more than you can handle ….. and you are unable to meet them.

Or maybe it seems like the things you need are going to others ….. leaving you lacking.

Our human managers may make unfair and unwise decisions ….. but God never will. 

‘And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.’

Prayer: Father God, we thank you that you are our manager, boss, and provider. You are always just ….. wise ….. and know all our needs. Help us to put our trust in you. Amen.

Sue’s Views

We went on a bit of a road trip yesterday with some great friends. We had lunch at Tairua ….. a walk on the beach at Whangamata ….. and an ice cream at Whiritoa. Our last stop was the gold mining pit at Waihi! You could say ….. it was a ‘golden day’! From a lovely welcome and great coffee and food ….. to golden sands and fond memories of holidays past ….. to a piece of our nations history ….. we came home feeling full and blessed. And all day the sun shone on us. Not every day is a ‘golden day’ ….. but everyday has ‘golden moments’. We so often ask people ‘How was your day?’ In most cases the answer would be ‘It was ok’ ….. or ‘It was fine’. Here are some better questions ….. especially to start a conversation with your family.

What was the best thing that happened to you today?

What was the hardest thing you went through today?

What did you learn from it? 

‘Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.’ Philippians 4:8

Prayer: Dear Lord, as I begin my day, please help me to see the gold! Help me focus on what is true ….. pure ….. lovely ….. and good. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Sue’s Views

One of the challenges of the past couple of years has been not being able to plan ahead. People have had to delay travel plans in case they get stuck somewhere. Weddings have been postponed due to restrictions. Education has been interrupted ….. businesses affected ….. family life inhibited ….. and so much more. For those of us who like to know what lies ahead ….. this has been stressful. But I’m reminded of a verse in the Bible:

‘Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.”’

All our plans are subject to God’s will and God’s timing! If it’s His will ….. no Covid ….. mandate ….. or restriction ….. can stop it!

Thoughts to ponder: 

How have you been inconvenienced by Covid rules? 

How have you seen God work things out for good? 

How will it change the way you move forward?

Prayer:

Thank you, Father God, that your plans for my life cannot be stopped. It may not happen the way I planned ….. but your plans are better than mine. I yield to your will ….. and trust you with the process. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Sue’s Views

Falling leaves ….. crisper mornings ….. shorter days ….. it must be Autumn! We don’t need a calendar or a thermometer to tell us things are changing. We see it and feel it! The signs we see in nature tell us to get ready for winter. We would be wise to heed them or else we could be unprepared and very cold! As it is in the natural realm ….. so it is in the spiritual realm. There are signs everywhere reminding us that Jesus is returning soon. Jesus told His disciples there would be false Messiahs, wars, famines, earthquakes, deception, persecution and betrayal in the Last Days. One of the most valuable gifts we have been given is the gift of discernment. It goes beyond what we see in the natural. When heeded ….. it will prepare us for eternity!