Pearls

Sue’s Views
I’m sure we all have moments of irritability and annoyance! It often starts with little things that add up and snowball into a much bigger problem. We can’t avoid them ….. but we can choose how to react. When a grain of sand gets inside an oyster shell ….. the oyster secretes a substance called nacre that coats the irritant ….. and produces a beautiful pearl. He turns something abrasive and uncomfortable into a jewel! We too need to look for ways to turn the little things that annoy us into something valuable. I love Romans 8:28 that says:
‘And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.’
Look for the lesson to be learned ….. or the opportunity to come closer to Gods purpose.

Save the Children

Sue’s Views
The devil has always targeted children since time began. He knows the potential inside each child ….. and he will do everything he can to stop it. From the killing of babies ….. to child sacrifice ….. to sex trafficking and abortion ….. his methods are varied but his aim is the same. As the new school year is about to begin ….. our children face different dangers like indoctrination and propaganda. As parents and grandparents ….. we have a huge responsibility to pray over and to teach truth to our children. But there is Someone who is even more passionate about our precious littlies than we are. In His Words:
“If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.”

Rainy Days and Mondays

Sue’s Views
We have woken up to rain here in Auckland ….. and the traffic lights have turned red! The rain is welcome. Not so much the traffic lights! For many of us ….. it produces more questions than answers. The truth is ….. there is no one on this Earth who knows how to deal with this situation. That’s why we need to look to God. I came across this scripture this morning:
“It’s far better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust any human.” — Psalm 118:8
The Good News: People are fallible. We can get burned by putting too much faith in a single person. But God is always trustworthy and there for us to turn to when we need Him.

Great is Thy Faithfulness

Sue’s Views
With the threat of Omicron on our doorstep ….. and the likelihood of further restrictions ….. we all need a dose of hope and joy. This song has been playing on my mind this morning. I hope it encourages you too!
Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father
There is no shadow of turning with Thee
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be
Great is Thy faithfulness
Great is Thy faithfulness
Morning by morning new mercies I see
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me
Summer and winter and springtime and harvest
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love
Great is Thy faithfulness
Great is Thy faithfulness
Morning by morning new mercies I see
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me
Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow
Blessings all mine with 10, 000 beside
Great is Thy faithfulness
Great is Thy faithfulness
Morning by morning new mercies I see
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided
Great is Thy faithfulness
Great is Thy faithfulness
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me

Stretch N Grow!

Sue’s Views
Are you feeling stretched? It’s because you are growing! The designers of baby clothes cleverly developed the ‘stretch n gro’ ….. because babies grow so fast. Without the stretchy fabric ….. parents would be buying new clothes every week! And so it is with us. Being stretched outside our comfort zone is uncomfortable! But when we look back and compare where we are today with where we were last year ….. we realise we have grown. Hopefully not around the waist ….. but spiritually and mentally. We find we can cope with things that used to be a challenge. We discover we have developed some wisdom ….. and some maturity. Every new challenge is difficult no matter how many we have overcome ….. but our past victories give us the strength and confidence to face the next one. Hey, Asaph, keep stretching those muscles!

God’s Promises

Sue’s Views
It’s hard to make plans for the future because of the uncertainty. It seems like Covid calls the shots (no pun intended)! In a way ….. it makes us live for today and in the moment. When you think about it ….. that’s all we really have. Jesus said “Don’t worry about tomorrow! Today’s needs are enough. Tomorrow will take care of itself ….. because it will then be ‘today’.” But when God ….. who knows the future ….. makes a promise ….. we can absolutely bank on it. He is not limited by governments ….. disasters ….. diseases ….. or man’s agendas. His Word is His bond! Hold onto those promises. If God said it ….. it will happen!

Peace

Sue’s Views
There are many things going on in the world at the moment to make us anxious. Some have loved ones in Tonga that they can’t communicate with ….. others have concerns about sicknesses and diseases ….. many have lost jobs or businesses. That’s to name but a few. Whatever worries you have ….. God is saying to you personally:
‘Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.’
He knows your anxieties and He says ‘Do not …..’  He sees your family ….. He is your Healer and Provider. May His peace surround you. It transcends your understanding!

Last Days

Sue’s Views
Scrolling through FB this morning ….. two posts stood out to me. One was about the earthquake and tsunami in Tonga. The other was a video of a man in the UK being arrested for preaching the gospel in the street. 
Just before Jesus died …..his disciples asked him what would be the signs of the last days. 
 ‘And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.’
He went on to say “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.’
I know many won’t bother to read this post. But if you have made it this far ….. surely you must see that we are in the end times right now. All the signs are there. God is delaying because it is not His will that any should perish but all would come to salvation. I urge you to heed the warning before it’s too late!

‘Depraved Minds’

Sue’s Views
We were watching people ….. mainly adults ….. playing on this water park at St Heliers on Tuesday. I was thinking what a great idea it was and looked like a lot of fun. Little did we know that ….. that same night ….. a life guard was attacked while patrolling the one at Maraetai and a crowd of drunk party goers broke in. This has resulted in the park’s closure. Just another example of the lawlessness and disrespect in our nation. Romans 1:28-32 tells it like it is: 
‘Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.’
That’s quite a list ….. and I’m definitely in there too! That’s why I’m so thankful that God sent Jesus to pay the price for my penalty. He did it for you too! Don’t wait till God ‘gives you over’. Turn to Him now!

When I Consider Your Heavens …..

Sue’s Views
There’s something about this picture that puts things into perspective! I’ve been amazed lately by some of the stupidity of so called ‘experts’ who are trying to solve our world’s problems. I feel they are making it all up as they go along ….. and burying themselves in the holes they are digging! Don’t get me wrong ….. I value education ….. but when we leave God out of the picture ….. we become fools! We don’t need expensive space exploration to tell us how the world began ….. and we don’t need scientists to tell us what’s going to happen in the future. Just read the Bible!
‘When I consider your heavens,
    the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
    which you have set in place,
what is mankind that you are mindful of them,
    human beings that you care for them?’ Psalm 8:3-4