The day with dianne Louise

“So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.” Galatians‬ ‭5‬:‭16‬-‭17‬ ‭NLT‬‬ Paul spells it out plainly here! He goes on to tell us what the attributes of both flesh and spirit are: “When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.  But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in ...

“God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.” ‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭2‬:‭8‬-‭9‬ ‭NLT‬‬ I read something recently that reminded me of how grace controls my life. If I am good, I am good because of the Holy Spirit that dwells within me, if I am Holy it is because of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. I can claim no glory for myself. The good I do is through the indwelling presence of God. How do I know this? Without Him I am a sinner filled with fleshly desires and corrupt attitudes. He has His ways of revealing this truth to me. Paul says it this way: “I am crucified with Christ and I now live by faith in the Son of God who loves me and gave Himself for me”. Galatians 2:20 By remaining aware of this I am kept safe from egotistical manoeuvres and attitudes. If I do anything worthy of praise it is because of Jesus and He must receive th...

“Now, who will want to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats. Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it. But do this in a gentle and respectful way. Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ. Remember, it is better to suffer for doing good, if that is what God wants, than to suffer for doing wrong!”  1 Peter‬ ‭3‬:‭13‬-‭17‬ ‭NLT‬‬ My young Nepali friend who had charges made against him for ‘religious conversion’ has been spared jail time whilst his enemies collect evidence. Normally a person is put in jail for 27 days. We who prayed are grateful, as is our young friend. Our young friend was doing much good, he had built a children’s home, was building churches and...

“When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.” ‭‭John‬ ‭16‬:‭13‬ ‭ESV‬‬ I am having to make a major financial decision by tomorrow and as yet I have not heard guidance. I am in a position where faith and wisdom disagree. A man of God once taught me: “if faith and wisdom disagree, choose wisdom every time”(Phil Pringle). My challenge is finding the wisdom of God, I have man’s wisdom. Perhaps the Lord has spoken and I’ve not heard or listened. I need clarity! Bill Johnson says God does not always tell him what to do but wants him to move then God directs, especially if he is at the wrong door. Perhaps this is the way. I cannot rely on the wisdom of man, it is fraught with emotion. Jesus said, “I am the Way!” I will follow Him! Amen!

“But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.” ‭‭Romans‬ ‭5‬:‭8‬ ‭NLT‬‬ To be able to receive rescue we must first admit we are in trouble; to receive assistance we must first admit we cannot do something; to receive salvation from sin we must first admit we are sinners. What is a sinner? Someone who has missed the mark of perfection, who insists that they are good enough by their own judgement, and not by God’s. If we go through life insisting that our determination of goodness is enough, when we finally die and stand before the sinless, perfect Christ and tell Him His goodness is not what we needed, where will we go? If heaven is not an option what is the alternative? Hell was created for Satan and his demons and fallen angels, however, his goal in life is to take as many of God’s children with him by deceiving them into thinking they, not Christ,  are the judge. Satan’s sin was pride, and elevating himself above God’s throne. ...

““Look, I am sending you out as sheep among wolves. So be as shrewd as snakes and harmless as doves. But beware! For you will be handed over to the courts and will be flogged with whips in the synagogues. You will stand trial before governors and kings because you are my followers. But this will be your opportunity to tell the rulers and other unbelievers about me. When you are arrested, don’t worry about how to respond or what to say. God will give you the right words at the right time. For it is not you who will be speaking—it will be the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.” Matthew‬ ‭10‬:‭16‬-‭20‬ ‭NLT‬‬ It is interesting that this is the scripture for today! My Nepali friend who has charges against him has been allowed to stay out of jail whilst his opponents gather evidence. Normally the accused is imprisoned for up to 27 days. My friend was free to return to Karhmandu some 5-6 hours drive away from where he was charged. This is a miracle in itself. Our God is indeed great...