Category: Sue’s Views

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Fine Dining

Sue’s Views
After experiencing a sea opening up for you to cross on dry land ….. and seeing your enemies drowned in that same sea ….. you’d think you’d never doubt God again! But a few days later reality set in! There were no supermarkets or coffee bars in the desert! The Israelites began to be hungry and thirsty ….. and complained to Moses for bringing them out of Egypt where they had been held captive but at least had food and drink. God wanted to teach them to rely on Him ….. and He had planned their menu! Manna for breakfast ….. and quail for dinner! Fine dining at its best! Can you imagine how many quail it would take to feed over 2 million people plus animals for 40 years? But every night ….. they would fly in! And when they were thirsty God told Moses to strike a rock with his rod ….. and rivers of water flowed out! Still they complained! I wonder how often we focus on the negatives ….. instead of being thankful for the positives. We take so much for granted. The daily grind can seem monotonous and tiresome ….. but it is actually full of miracles!

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Miracle Working God!

Sue’s Views
Many years ago ….. Frank & I went to Universal Studios in Hollywood. We were taken around on a little train to see the sights. One of the attractions then was the parting of the Red Sea from the movie ‘The Ten Commandments’. I must say it was rather disappointing. I’m sure today’s movie makers would do a much better job! But this was no movie! It actually happened. Have you ever felt trapped with nowhere to go? The Israelites found themselves between a rock and a hard place! Mountains on one side ….. a sea on the other ….. and their enemies closing in on them from behind. But God said ‘Stand still and see what I’m about to do!’ He caused a powerful wind to blow so that the sea parted and left enough of a dry path for at least 3 million people plus livestock to pass through! Yes! It makes for a wonderful opportunity for special effects ….. but God doesn’t need any! He is still a miracle worker and will make a way for you as well!

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The Great Escape

Sue’s Views
Who has discovered that God’s ways of doing things is very different to ours? You could call the Book of Exodus ‘The Great Escape’! Two plus million people escaped from prison in one night! But they had strict rules about preparation ….. diet ….. and what to take with them. Much of it didn’t make much sense at the time ….. but God had their best interest at heart. He was about to take them on the journey of a lifetime! Instead of taking them by the shortest route ….. He took them the long and arduous way. By doing that ….. they avoided the hostility of enemies who would have taken them back to Egypt. They still encountered many obstacles and hardships ….. but God was teaching them obedience and trust. If life is tough for you right now ….. know this ….. God sees the whole route of your journey from beginning to end. He may be protecting you from dangers you are unaware of. He may be training you for greater things ahead. He may be detoxing you of things of the past. As He provided for 2 million people ….. He will provide for you!

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Hyssop

Sue’s Views

After nine terrible plagues and still Pharoah refusing to let the Israelites go ….. God told Moses to get the people ready for a night to remember! He told each family to kill a lamb ….. collect its blood in a basin ….. and apply it to the door posts and lintel of their home using a common plant called hyssop which is similar to our lavender plant. That night ….. the angel of death would pass over every home and kill the first born ….. except those that had the blood on the door posts and lintels. For the Egyptians it was a night of mourning. For the Israelites it was a night of release from their slavery. This story points towards the need for Jesus to die and shed His blood in order for us to be set free from the slavery of sin. Why the hyssop? The blood in the basin did nothing until it was applied to the doorframe. The hyssop was the means by which it was activated. For us ….. it refers to our testimony. We are saved by the blood of the Lamb ….. and the word of our testimony! When we share our testimony and confess our faith in Jesus ….. we are applying the blood to our selves and our households.   

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Plagues of Judgement

Sue’s Views
People often ask ‘How can a God of love allow such bad things to happen?’ We should be asking ‘How can a Holy God allow disobedient people to live?’ The plagues of Egypt are a great answer to that question. God told Pharoah through Moses to ‘Let my people go!’ Pharoah refused so God gave him a demonstration of what He was capable of. Still Pharoah refused! So God began to bring plagues of pestilence ….. destruction ….. disease  ….. and finally ….. death. Each time Pharoah hardened his heart until God said ‘Enough!’ He is patient with us ….. and gives us every opportunity to turn around. But He sees our hearts and knows our choices. This resulted in the deaths of the firstborn in each Egyptian family. Could it be that the ‘plagues we see in our world today are a result of our not heeding God’s commandments?

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Spiritual Conflict

Sue’s Views

We are all aware of the many conflicts going on in our world today. International conflicts ….. political conflicts ….. social conflicts ….. family conflicts ….. to name a few. But what we may not all be aware of is ….. that behind all these is a spiritual conflict. There are forces of darkness that have waged war against the Kingdom of God since the beginning of time. These are demonstrated in the book of Exodus. Moses was told by God to go to Pharoah and command him to ‘Let my people go’! Pharoah was stubborn and proud. He thought he was God! He refused! So began a contest. At first ….. the Egyptian priests called on their gods to replicate the miracles God did through Moses ….. and they did. Moses turned his rod into a serpent ….. and they were able to do the same. The only difference was that Moses serpent swallowed all the others! What followed was an onslaught of 10 plagues that proved God’s power and sovereignty. Today ….. many turn to the occult for answers and power. There is a fascination with the supernatural. But things like horoscopes ….. ouji boards ….. and seances ….. will only open a door to the demonic world. If you want to experience the truly supernatural ….. become a part of God’s army! 

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Burning Bush

Sue’s Views
Moses grew up in the King’s palace but he never forgot he was a Hebrew. He saw the way his people were treated and tried to help ….. but things only got worse. After murdering an Egyptian slave driver ….. he ran away in fear of his life. He settled down and started a new life in the wilderness ….. but God still had other plans for him. One day ….. God spoke to Moses from a bush that was on fire but not consumed. Thankfully ….. Moses saw it and went to investigate. That day ….. he received the great commission of his life! To go back to Egypt and set his people free! ‘Who me?’ ….. ‘the one who messed up?’ ….. ‘I missed my opportunity!’ ….. ‘send someone else’ ….. ‘I can’t even speak well.’ Does any of this sound familiar? One thing Moses was about to learn was that it’s no use arguing with God! He can do more with a man who has spent 40 years running away ….. than with a man who spent 40 years in a palace! It’s never too late ….. your past failures do not disqualify you ….. God will make up for your inabilities.

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Attitude

Sue’s Views

Our attitude makes all the difference as to whether we win or lose in life. Joseph was an amazing example of that. His roller coaster journey took him to some very dark places. Sold as a slave by his own brothers ….. wrongly accused ….. sent to prison ….. forgotten! But in each of those dark places ….. the Lord was with Joseph. He became the head slave in a wealthy man’s house ….. the head administrator in prison ….. and finally the Prime Minister of Egypt. When his brothers knelt before him in fear of their lives ….. Joseph told them it wasn’t their doing but God’s. Through all his hardships and struggles ….. he could see God’s purpose in it all. What an attitude! 

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By gad or by God?

Sue’s Views
Many would say that life happens by chance. You are born ….. grow up ….. get a job ….. marry and raise children ….. live your best life ….. and die! They would put success down to them having made good decisions. Others would say they got lucky. There’s an old saying ‘by gad’ ….. which means ‘by luck’. We can either live ‘by gad’ or we can live ‘by God’. Right throughout history ….. we see design ….. purpose ….. and destiny. Abraham had to leave his comfortable home to go to the place God showed him. Jacob had to leave his home to find a wife. Joseph had to go to Egypt in order to save the lives of his family. Jacob had to leave his home to go to Egypt with a family of 70. It still amazes me how God brought Frank from Fiji to New Zealand ….. and me all the way from England to meet in Manurewa! Our tribe now numbers 18! Did that happen by chance? I don’t think so! 

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Life’s Journey

Sue’s Views

Do you ever trace your life back and think ….. ‘If that decision hadn’t been made my life would have turned out very differently!’ 55 years ago ….. my Dad made the decision to migrate to New Zealand. The journey took 6 weeks on the ship in the photo. My pregnant Mum and I were not so keen but left our home and family to go to this far away country. I had no concept of God at that time ….. but have since come to realise that He was in control of our destiny. Of course we have to obey him ….. but through the Bible ….. He moves people to where He wants them. God changed Jacob’s name to Israel and He became a very large family. One of his sons ….. Joseph ….. was taken prisoner to Egypt. Through some amazing occurrences ….. he ended up as the Prime Minister and helped his family out of a dire famine. He later saw that all the trials he had gone through were because God was directing his path for His purpose. We often won’t understand the journey until we look back.