Treasure Chest

I just love the Bible, the Living Word of God.
I find reading the Word like running my hands through a chest full of treasure.
Sometimes I don't always appreciate the worth of what my hands are holding, and sometimes I am so amazed at a particular gem that I pick it out and just look at it. Letting the light fall on different facets and seeing different things.

Sacrifice

I come into work today heard these words on the radio:

But I've shined like a diamond through sacrifice

here's the full song:

Dolly Parton
The Sacrifice lyrics
Well, I've sacrificed time with family and friends
Gave up vacations for work without end
24/7, 365
But I was willing to make the sacrifice

But empty or full, I've carried my pale
You don't drink the water if you don't dig the well
Through blood sweat and tears I have built a good life
But it didn't come without sacrifice

But I was gonna be rich no matter how much it cost
And I was gonna win no matter how much I lost
All through the years I kept my eye on the prize
You ask if it's worth the sacrifice, the sacrifice

I think about Jesus and all that he gave
And the ultimate sacrifice that he made
He is my strength and my guiding light
And he's taught me that nothing's without sacrifice

I was gonna be rich no matter how much it cost
And I was gonna win no matter how much I lost
I wanted success and, brother, I've paid the price
And, yes, it's been worth the sacrifice, the sacrifice

I was gonna be rich no matter how much it cost
And I was gonna win no matter how much I lost
Grindstones and rhinestones have made up my life
But I've shined like a diamond through sacrifice

I was gonna be rich no matter how much it cost
And I was gonna win no matter how much I lost
But I hope God will tell me, 'Well done, my child
You've won your reward through your sacrifice, the sacrifice'

The sacrifice
But sometimes I wonder in the still of the night
Is it really worth the sacrifice
I've often laughed and I've often cried
I've often failed but I've always tried
I made the sacrifice

I Surrender!!!

I Surrender! Please…don't kill me!

We talk about surrendering to God a lot.

I surrender this situation…
I surrender this problem…
I surrender this attitude…
I surrender to the Holy Spirit…

I have some bad news for you though if it's followed with the line 'please don't kill me', because Jesus doesn't take prisoners.

When we become Christians, we should be surrendering our lives to Him. We say, I get off the throne of my life and hand the seat to you. It's for you to rule and reign from.

What does Jesus do with our surrendered self? The same thing He does to anything that surrenders to Him, He takes it to the Cross and nails it to it until it's dead. Sorry, no cushy cell or slap across the knuckles, it's the death sentence.

Of course, when you die on the Cross you are resurrected again with Him, you are Born Again, A new creation, the old has gone, the new has come.

Thinking on all this the other day I had a picture of a freshly dug grave, and a pair of hands reaching up scrabbling at the dirt trying to get out. That's not surrender. Surrender is lying down and letting that person die. Letting the flesh be crucified so the Spirit can soar. Letting the earth cover you and killing you off.

After we become Christians we aren't finished surrendering to Him. Jesus said we should DAILY take up our Cross and follow Him. The Holy Spirit, who has come and made His home in us, calling us His Temple, will point out more and more things to us that need to go. Attitudes, situations we are involved with, conditions we have, that need to die. We have to surrender them. Let them go. Don't try and cling on to them, picture them being taken to the Cross and nailed there.  When we agreed to make Him Lord, He took us seriously.

Then wait to see what God replaces them with…because God always fills a gap. There are no vacuums in the Kingdom, where there is a space in your life the Holy Spirit rushes in to fill it.

Inspiring Books

I've started making a list of the most inspirational books on Amazon.
The list is here:
LINK

Here is what's on it so far:

1.  The Message Remix 2.0: The Bible In contemporary Language by Eugene H. Peterson The list author says: "The Bible had to be first item. I chose the Message translation as any age can enjoy just picking it up and reading." £5.41

2.  The Heavenly Man: The Remarkable True Story of Chinese Christian Brother Yun by Brother Yun The list author says: "The story of Brother Yun brings the reality of being a Chinese Christian crashing into the homes of the West." £6.30

3.  The Problem of Wineskins by Howard A Snyder The list author says: "You will never look at your Church in the same way again. A dangerous book." Used & New from: £0.75

4.  Smith Wigglesworth: The Complete Collection of His Life Teachings by Alice Berry The list author says: "Not a biography, but a collection of his sermons. Experience Smith speaking to you." £17.09   Used & New from: £12.91

5.  Tramp for the Lord: The Years After the Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom The list author says: "See how a little old lady devestates those around her. An amazing lady." £6.29   Used & New from: £1.99

6.  No Compromise: The Life Story of Keith Green by Melody Green The list author says: "When Kieth was saved, he really got saved. He tried to live a life that he saw the Bible teach. Radical." Used & New from: £1.25

7.  The Lion and the Lamb: Reflections on the Book of Revelation, Volume 1 by Tony Ling The list author says:  "If you know Tony, you can't help but hear his voice as you read these 2 volumes. The best books on revelation you will ever read." £8.99   Used & New from: £4.73

8.  Worship: A Heart for God by Bryn Jones The list author says: "Everyone who knew Bryn loved him. Here is a collection of inspirations on Worshipping." Used & New from: £0.01

Leadership

I just finished reading the memoirs of Major Dick Winters, a book I received for my Birthday. Dick Winters is the legendary leader of Easy Company, immortalised in the Band Of Brothers HBO series.

His book finishes with 10 points on leadership, here it is, and it deserves some thought.


Leadership at the Point of the Bayonet


1. Strive to be a leader of character, competence, and courage.
2. Lead from the front. Say, “Follow me!” and then lead the way.
3. Stay in top physical shape--physical stamina is the root of mental toughness.
4. Develop your team. If you know your people, are fair in setting realistic goals and expectations, and lead by example, you will develop teamwork.
5. Delegate responsibility to your subordinates and let them do their job. You can’t do a good job if you don’t have a chance to use your imagination and creativity.
6. Anticipate problems and prepare to overcome obstacles. Don’t wait until you get to the top of the ridge and then make up your mind.
7. Remain humble. Don’t worry about who receives the credit. Never let power or authority go to your head.
8. Take a moment of self-reflection. Look at yourself in the mirror every night and ask yourself if you did your best.
9. True satisfaction comes from getting the job done. They key to a successful leader is to earn respect--not because of rank or position, but because you are a leader of character.
10. Hang Tough!--Never, ever, give up.

Working for God

I was recently very inspired and challenged again as to how much we do things in 'the flesh' as opposed to 'the Spirit' after reading this in Tozer's book 'The Set Of The Sail' in the chapter 'Substitutes for Discipleship':

 Another substitute for discipleship that I would mention (though these do not exhaust the list) is zealous religious activity.
Working for Christ has today been accepted as the ultimate test of godliness among all but a few evangelical Christians. Christ has become a project to be promoted or a cause to be served instead of a Lord to be obeyed. Thousands of mistaken persons seek to do for Christ whatever their fancy suggests should be done, and in whatever way they think best. The what and the how of Christian service can only originate in the sovereign will of our Lord, but the busy beavers among us ignore this fact and think up their own schemes. The result is an army of men who run without being sent and speak without being commanded.
To avoid the snare of unauthorized substitution I recommend a careful and prayerful study of the Lordship of Christ and the discipleship of the believer.

Happy Anniversary

So, Nicky and I recently celebrated our 19th Wedding Anniversary.
I say celebrated, but really that's completely misleading.
The Tuesday of our Anniversary I had been suffering from a sore throat.
I decided to go to the Doctor's and get some pills and just return to work, but when the Doctor saw me he diagnosed Quinsy.
I'd never heard of it, and apparently it's not that common, being an old type of illness. It's so uncommon, that he immediately got on the phone to another Doctor to come and have a look, as they'd never seen it before. the other Doctor simply said "Oooh, lovely".
A funny story, but Praise God I got the Doctor who actually knew what it was! Not one of the Doctors who would have given me a wrong diagnosis.

Anyway, I spent our Anniversary in hospital hooked up to IVF liquids and antibiotics after they'd put a huge needle down my throat to try and scratch the swelling.
Not pleasant.
I couldn't talk or eat for the best part of 24 hours.
I really noticed how much I missed speaking in tongues. It was a couple of days later after being discharged that I had the strength to talk a bit and I started speaking in tongues again. I was very aware of these power words going through my throat, like reverse medicine, coming out instead of going in.

I've been speaking in tongues a lot more since. About 15 mins at a time. I seem to have had a heightening of my understanding of just how powerful this gift of the Spirit is.