Grafted in

“And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.”Romans‬ ‭12‬:‭1‬ ‭NLT‬‬

By laying down my ‘rights’ to live as I choose, I am allowing the Holy Spirit to guide, reprove and train me in all godliness. 

In chapter 11 Paul discussed the fact that the Jews failed to believe and therefore we Gentiles have the opportunity to be grafted into the tree, which is represented by Abraham who believed God and was righteous before Him. We are reminded that the Jews were blinded by unbelief until the full number of Gentiles have come in. 

This does not mean that God has forsaken them, He still loves them. They are His chosen people. However we Gentiles are grafted in and become His loved ones. This does not mean we can live for ourselves and treat His gift lightly. He is able to remove us as well.

Our task is to live wholly committed to Him, in all we do we are His representatives. Our bodies are His temple and we cannot live in the lusts of the flesh, but rather in the spirit. Amen!

The headwaters

“For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.”

‭‭Habakkuk‬ ‭2‬:‭14‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Right now, in this day, a vast awakening to God is underway. People are coming to Him in record numbers. I sense this prophesy is coming to pass. This is so good! I am praying into this space.

Lately I have had two dreams, very vivid dreams. In the first I was watching my daughter who was a business woman. Her heart was hard towards God. Her focus was worldly wealth. The Lord had decided it was time for her to come back to Him. She was on the bank of a river watching a black boat, in which she had just placed all her treasure. The black boat capsized and was lost, rather than repent she ranted and raved at the captain of the boat. I saw a hard heart, and sensed that same heart was in me. It caused me to repent and ask for forgiveness that I might have been the cause of her hard heart.

In the second dream I was a married woman. I was on a bank looking down where a group of businessmen were meeting. My husband was one of those men. The next scene we were in a car together and he said, “we have just become very wealthy.” I asked how much, and he replied, “millions perhaps billions. What will we do with this money?” I asked how it came about. He said, “I said that the headwater would not break and it didn’t. Everyone else said it would. I alone stood believing it would not break. (It seemed like a gamble)” I said, “we must pray and ask God what to do with it”. I knew I did not want to be drawn into the love of it. I could sense the draw of the love for it.

Why I am dreaming about business I do not know. Perhaps these dreams mean something to someone.

Faith is..

“Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.”Hebrews‬ ‭11‬:‭1‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Faith is a gift given to each of us to use in our relationship with the Lord. Many do not use it, they misunderstand it and rely too much on their own hand.

Faith must be stepped into. If we read the gospels and do a word search where Jesus said: ‘you faith has made you whole’, we discover instances where people did something in their contact with Jesus. They came, they touched Him in Faith, they refused to be silenced. For me faith is just that, I must step into it. I must pursue the prize in faith.

I have done this with my health, my finances my relationships. Self-pity had to be destroyed first. All offense, all self-help and wrong attitudes and focus on Jesus and His provision. There is one area I am constantly challenged, my hearing. However, I have stepped into relationships with people, creating space for people to belong. I love on them and make them welcome. I refuse to be kept silent. 

Yesterday in pouring rain and hail, my friends Chelle and I went on a long scooter ride to visit our Karmarong contact to complete some research for our upcoming research application with the Tribhuvan University here in Nepal. Once granted we can travel up to the far reaches of Mugu province and connect with the people there. The Karmarong write with the Tibetan Script. The weather tried to stop us, the traffic tried to hinder us but we went and praise God we did. A hot cup of tea awaited us and a complete list of Karmarong words. However, the best part was the communication and friendship given.

The author of peace

“Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭19‬:‭38‬ ‭NIV‬‬

These words were spoken by Jesus’ disciples as He rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. The Pharisees chastised Him and said, “teacher rebuke your followers for saying such things”. Jesus responded, “ “If they kept quiet, the stones along the road would burst into cheers!”Luke‬ ‭19‬:‭40‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Imagine that! Stones crying out their praise. Only in cartoons would you expect stones to have a voice. Yet, their creator knew something we didn’t. Nothing is impossible to God.

The words the disciples used were from Psalms 118:26 and implied that Jesus was the Messiah, which He was and is. The Pharisees thought they had the authority to determine who was the Messiah and who was not. However, because they could not recognise God’s divine provision, they lost all authority.

Jesus is recorded as weeping over Jerusalem. Jerusalem did not recognise its saviour and would kill Him as it did many prophets before Him. He then prophesied about Jerusalem’s destruction, which occurred in AD 70.

Those who accept Jesus as saviour will experience divine peace, but those who reject Him will experience eternal turmoil. He is the author and completor of peace. Amen!

Prince of Peace

“The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine.”Isaiah‬ ‭9‬:‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

This prophetic word was given by Isaiah about Galilee. At the time of the prophesy the land was under Assyrian oppression. However, the prophesy goes on to speak about the coming Messiah.

The Christian world love to use this verse in regard to missions, and indeed the Lord may use it to speak hope into the heart of the missionary about the people they were sent to. For me, a missionary, I claim them. However, the chapter is more than this, it is about our saviour. Verse 6 begins to describe Him:

For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government shall be upon His shoulders. He will be named wonderful counsellor, mighty God, eternal father, prince of peace.

Jesus is the light that shines in darkness. He is the answer, the way, the truth and the life. Without Him I am a noisy gong, a clanging cymbal. For He is love. I can have the best laid plans and all they will be are my earthy plans, without His anointing and covering. I must bring Him, for He alone sets captives free! Amen!

Bones safe

“The righteous person faces many troubles, but the Lord comes to the rescue each time. For the Lord protects the bones of the righteous; not one of them is broken!”Psalms‬ ‭34‬:‭19‬-‭20‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I am made righteous through Jesus’ sacrifice, it has nothing to do with my own efforts. I am grateful for Jesus. By His grace I am redeemed. I am set free from the works of the law and the struggle to be right with God. Rather I surrender my efforts and accept His perfect sacrifice.

Today Australia remembers the men and women who served during the wars. It is Anzac Day. Nepal is steeped in protests against the government who the people deem to be wicked. The sacrifices made in war epitomise the sacrifice Jesus made. However, as we are a sinful lot our sacrifices are not perfect and cannot save mankind from the effects of sin. Nepal would love a godly leader, unfortunately it has leaders steeped in corruption.

I love the scripture above, because it promises my bones safety. I have broken many over the years, but here in Nepal I am trusting my God to keep them from breakage. I will not lift my hand to assist the Lord in His keeping, as He is perfectly able and I must trust Him.

The Lord does not need my assistance in righteousness or in keeping me. Because of His love, I am safe. Amen!

Planting and watering

“It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow. The one who plants and the one who waters work together with the same purpose. And both will be rewarded for their own hard work. For we are both God’s workers. And you are God’s field. You are God’s building.”

‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭3‬:‭7‬-‭9‬ ‭NLT‬‬

In this chapter Paul is dealing with favouritism. Paul had pioneered the work in Corinth and Apollos had presumably pastored the work. Some were saying, “we belong to Apollos”, others, “we belong to Paul”. Paul is emphasising that the important one is God, He produces the growth. Paul goes on to say that both the one who plants and the one who waters must do the job not according to man but to God. Each will be rewarded on the last day when their works will be tested by fire. What is down in the flesh will be destroyed, but what is down in the Spirit will stand.

The Lord has been working in me to know this accountability. The people He brings into my life I must care for them as He would, not to gain fleshly rewards. He gives me a heart for the lost and broken and I gather them and draw them into relationship. I then pray for them and brood over them to see them grow as the Lord would have them flourish.

I am convicted that caring for God’s people has nothing to do with manipulation or control. People need to find God themselves, I can draw them in and share Him with them, speaking truth and challenging sin but, It is their relationship with Jesus that is most important. 

I am also not the sole source of their provision, He is. Each must develop a relationship of faith with their Lord and saviour. I play my part, but that is all. I can’t intrude on the Lord’s territory.

May I finish the race well! Amen!