[Friday's Devotional] - The Door

When I became a Christian it felt like I was constantly fighting against certain thoughts and habits that I never gave a second thought to before I was a Christian. Things that were perfectly acceptable before turned into things I constantly battled to avoid afterwards. If I'm honest it hasn't really changed since!  I came across the following illustration that I found helpful, so I thought I'd share it:

Imagine your life as a door. Before you became a Christian, your sins were like nails being pounded into the door and left there. When you asked Christ to forgive you for all your sins, all of the nails you had collected were removed. Unfortunately, what was left was a door full of holes! Not very pleasant to look at and not particularly useful either. But God then began patching up the holes. More accurately He began healing the scars left by sin, making your life into a door that will look unscarred after years of constant pounding. He truly does make us a new creation! That is why it is so important for people to come to know Christ's forgiveness early in life. The longer we leave it, the more nails get pounded into our door, and the more scars there are left behind.  Those scars can take longer to heal and may leave deeper holes. But it can be very hard to stop doing what is wrong, to stop hammering more nails into the door, and to change the way we are living. Paul knew this all too well, as you will see in today's reading.

"I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.  For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing." Romans 7: 15-19

Like Paul, we all experience the tug to give in again to our sinful nature, but our new nature moves us to resist. What we are experiencing is a new sensitivity to sin. Since sin wants to drive a hole in us, and Christ wants to keep us unscarred by the effects of sin, it is no longer comfortable to ignore the constant pounding. Confessing our sin will always remove the nail and stop that pounding. And our awareness of our sin is also confirmation that God's Holy Spirit has truly entered our life and has come to change us. If He hadn't, we would remain numb to the nails of sin.

So – as we enter the summer break, it is my prayer for you all that you would find the time to examine your door, and be open and ready for God to come and remove the nails that are still there, and patch up the holes. May you be restored to a door of great beauty, with new purpose and fresh strength to serve the carpenter.

God bless.

Corinne Mason.

Read the Bible in a year:  Psalm 88:9b-18,            Hosea 6:1-7:16, Romans 7:14-8:8

[Thursday's Devotional] - Ignorance is bliss

I am sure we have all been guilty of purposefully ignoring something that we do not really want to see. Well – I have anyway - I hope I'm not the only one! It may be a warning sign, speed restriction, a person we may not want to speak to, a situation happening that we'd rather not get involved in. Sometimes, we turn a blind eye and chose to pretend we've not seen what's really going on. Or you may be able to recall a time as a child when you deliberately chose to ignore what your parents or a teacher were telling you. No doubt there would have been some consequences to ignoring what you had been told.

Today's passage reminded me of this and of how I have suffered several times for thinking I knew better and pretending I didn't really know the rules.

 "That is why I felt so fine as long as I did not understand what the law really demanded. But when I learned the truth, I realized that I had broken the law and was a sinner, doomed to die. So as far as I was concerned, the good law which was supposed to show me the way of life resulted instead in my being given the death penalty. Sin fooled me by taking the good laws of God and then using them to make me guilty of death." Romans 7:9-11 [The Living Bible]

It is very easy to ignore the rules – to pretend we do not know God's law, His commandments, the rules He has set us to live by. We think we can get along just fine without them. If people feel fine without the law, why did God give it? He gave us the law, the rules to live by, because sin is real and dangerous.

Imagine a beach on a sunny day. You're hot and sticky, so head off to the sea for a lovely cooling swim. You're splashing around, feeling exhilarated and free in the vast expanse of water. Suddenly you notice a sign that says "NO SWIMMING – SHARKS IN THE WATER". Your lovely swim is ruined! Is it the sign's fault? Are you angry with the people who put the sign up? Of course not. God's law is like that sign – it is essential and we are grateful for it – but it doesn't get rid of the sharks. It simply tells us what to do to avoid being destroyed by them.

Today, take some time to reflect on what signs God may be showing to you, and make the conscious decision to listen to their warning and obey what God is telling you. Don't get bitten by the sharks!!

Corinne Mason

Read the Bible in a year:  Psalm 88:1-9a, Hosea 3:1-5:15, Romans 7:1-13

[Wednesday's Devotional] - Eternal Slavery

Yesterday I encouraged you to take a step in breaking the cycle of repeated sin, trusting in the promise that Christ has come to break the power they had over us so that we need not be slaves to impurity any longer.

However, the life of slavery didn't end there! In today's reading we discover that we are now to become slaves to a new life – a life of righteousness.

"Just as you used to offer yourselves as slaves to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer yourselves as slaves to righteousness leading to holiness.  When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.  Romans 6:19-23 [NIV]

How does that make you feel? What is the difference between being a slave to sin and a slave to righteousness? Surely slavery is the same no matter what it is to?

The difference comes in how it should make us feel. A life of slavery to sin leaves us drained, angered, with low self worth and a feeling of failure. A life of slavery to righteousness should have us feeling full of life, actively seeking new challenges, walking with head held high and knowing that we are making a difference and are walking in obedience. We live our lives knowing that this new slavery is leading us to an eternal life of freedom, rather than committing us to an eternal life of hell.

What step will you take today to become a better slave to righteousness, and take you a step further away from your life of slavery to sin?

Corinne Mason.

Read the Bible in a year:  Psalm 87:1-7, Hosea 1:1-2:23,  Romans 6:11-23

[Tuesday's Devotional] - Here we go again!

How many times have you thought or said that? When the same old situation arises, or you find yourself saying or doing the same thing again and again, even though you may have vowed to stop? Here we go again – same old failures, same old sins.

 

The bible tells us that Christ has come to break the power of sin over us. The whole of today's reading from Romans (Romans 5:12-6:10) speaks of the differences between Adam's sin, and Christ's redeeming power, and of the power of sin over us being broken. Part of me wanted to just quote the whole of those verses for it says all there is to be said! Try and find the time today to read those verses, even if you do not normally follow the bible in a year plan.

 

Do you really believe that Christ came to take your sins? Do you really believe that he can break the power of those sins that hold you? Or are you resigned to the idea that your sins are too great to be dealt with, that you are a useless case who will never get out of the bad habits that bind you and the sins that hold you every day?

 

 "What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?  We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. Romans 6:1-5 [NIV]

Because of Christ, we no longer need to live as slaves to the sins we repeatedly commit. It is time to get off the merry-go-round of repeated offences; we don't need to suffer that ride any more.

So today – step off, and enjoy the stillness of a life with new promises and a lightness of spirit now you're free from the cycle of repeated sin. Christ WILL help you – just reach out and take His hand as you step off the ride.

Corinne Mason.

Read the Bible in a year:  Proverbs 17:15-24, Amos 8:1-9:15, Romans 5:12-6:10

[Monday's Devotional] - Finding Peace and Joy

 

I regularly receive emails from our church prayer chain, and feel privileged to share in praying for those in need. One of the frequent requests in these emails is to pray for peace for people as they face certain difficult situations. As somebody who also asks for prayer in this way, it is very reassuring and comforting to know that many people are surrounding me and my difficult situations in prayer. And I am often able to say what a difference that has made. I find I am more at peace with my problems once others are praying.

 

Very recently my grandfather passed away, and I was particularly concerned about family relationships. There was disagreement about funeral arrangements, changes in plans, not agreeing with decisions others had made, and as a result strained relationships were becoming even more broken. Already broken people were becoming even more hurt by others. It was a humanist funeral and as a Christian I was struggling with the lack of God in it all. I was also concerned about the funeral as my divorced parents were both going to be there, and I was worried it would be difficult and awkward. However, several people were praying for us all, and with God's blessing on it, it turned out to be a very fitting celebration of an amazing man and of all he had achieved during his 98 years. And most surprisingly to me, my parents spent the afternoon in each other's company and talked, laughed and reminisced. God gave us all joy in our sorrows that day.

 

 

"Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us." Romans 5:1-5 [NIV]

 

Paul tells us that in the future we will become stronger, but until that time we must overcome various problems and challenges. In practical terms this means that we are likely to experience difficulties that will help us grow. Problems we face will help to develop our patience – which in turn will strengthen our character, and deepen our trust in God. This should also give us greater confidence about the future.

 

You probably find your patience tested in some way every day. Thank God for these opportunities to grow and deal with the challenges in His strength.

 

Corinne Mason

 

Read the Bible in a year:  Psalm 86:11-17, Amos 6:1-7:17, Romans 4:16-5:11

[Friday's Devotional] - Life in all its Fullness

Today we come to the final area of life that affects us deeply: our spiritual life. And yet I'm reluctant to call it just one area of life because it is so much more than that.

 

Knowing God's presence in the world and his love for you personally and developing a relationship with God is not just one part of your life. Instead it is more like being given a pair of glasses that somehow bring the whole of your life into focus. An outlook that gives us a clearer view of every other area of our lives.  In short it gives you a reason to live or something that 'pulls you out of bed every morning'.

 

'For I know the plans I have for you' declares the Lord 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future' Jeremiah 29:11 [NIV]

 

Those two words 'hope' and 'future' are the chief gifts of being spiritually alive. As we deepen our trust in a God who is both good and powerful so we are enabled to live in hope and confidence even when some of the other areas of our lives cause us pain.

 

'Future' means knowing the ending. I don't know about you but I hate to watch a film if I suspect a sad ending. Often I won't even begin to watch it until someone who has seen it already reassures me that 'it'll all turn out okay in the end'. Only with that hope in view can I handle the anxiety and tension thrown up by the twists and turns in the plot.

 

The resurrection of Jesus gives us all that hope and future, not just personally for own transformation but for the redemption of the whole of creation. Now there's a hope worth hanging on to.

 

Sheila Bridge

[Thursday's Devotional] - Who’s pulling your (purse) strings?

So far we have looked at three areas of life that might be classed as internal to our well-being: our physical feelings, our emotional responses and our defining relationships.

 

Today I want to think about an area of life that may not be as much in your control – your financial situation.

 

Who or what is most in control in this area of your life?  The Media? With its 'must have' messages? Or maybe it's simply the dull everyday drain of bills to pay that dictate your financial outlook?

 

Is this an area of your life that you are in control of or one that is controlling you?

 

When Jesus talked about provision, he drew the crowd's attention to the lilies of the field and the birds of the air. (Matthew 6:26-28). He reminded them to trust in God's ample provision, but he wasn't simply saying 'don't worry, be happy'. He also told them to do something 'to store up for themselves treasures in heaven, were moth and rust do not destroy' (Matthew 6:20).

 

What action could you take today that might amount to 'storing up for yourself treasure in heaven'?

 

Pray: for yourself and your financial concerns, remembering God's promise of provision. You could also pray for the many whose lives are being destroyed by debt and pray for the work of CAP as they seek to bring hope into this area of people's lives.

 

 

Take action: if you are being controlled by a financial situation today, take a step today towards winning back your life

 

Sheila Bridge

[Wednesday's Devotional] - Relationships: how are you bearing up?

 

'Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another' Colossians 3:13

 

When my mum remarried again after being a widow for five years, the family friend who spoke at her wedding gave her and my new step-father a pair of ornamental bears. They were small and looked rather cross with each other. They were given to sit on the mantel-piece as a daily reminder that in marriage we are called to 'bear' with one another.

 

But it's not just in marriage, any of our relationships may challenge us to 'bear' with the irritating characteristics of a fellow human being.

 

Think about your relationships today. With whom are you most likely to feel irritated or unloving? Who is it that can take you from 'Nought to Screaming' in 20 seconds?  How might you improve the relationship between you and that person today?

 

Here are two suggestions: firstly reflect soberly on the fact that you are not perfect, you probably drive other people bonkers in your own unique way. Secondly remind yourself that you are only responsible for your side of whatever difficult relationship you experience. Paul advises us wisely that we should live in peace with all men (and women) but he realistically adds 'if it is possible, as far as it depends on you' (Romans 12:18).  In other words we can only do our part.  We should not beat ourselves up over people who refuse to live in peace with us but merely do the best that we can to respond lovingly to them.

 

Pray today for those people who trouble you in any kind of way. But don't just pray for them, pray also for yourself that you will have the grace and strength to bear with them patiently.

 

Sheila Bridge

 

[Tuesday's Devotional] - What do my feelings reveal?

 

Today we are considering another aspect of life that affects our well-being: our emotional responses to the things that happen to us.

 

Some emotional reactions are completely irrational, for example, brass bands always make me cry and I have no idea why! But most emotions, when they surface, give us a clue about our interior life and we do well to heed them.

 

Does waiting to pull out at road junction for more than thirty seconds have you shouting at the traffic? Does a stray comment from a friend or colleague unsettle you more than it reasonably should? Does someone else's house/car/life-style leave you feeling restless, inadequate or down-right envious.

 

Controlling emotions is a bit like scooping up jelly with a fork. Emotions can be messy so one way a lot of us 'deal' with them is to deny they exist. This is pretty futile, as they have a way of leaking out in other ways: depression can sometimes be the result of unacknowledged anger.

 

A much better way to be emotionally healthy is to own up to the emotions you experience but challenge the beliefs that fuel them.  Shouting at the traffic is driven by a belief that says 'I must be in control/on time or things will go badly wrong'. Being upset by a minor remark comes from a belief that says 'what other people think about me is really all that matters'.  Feelings of envy spring from a belief that 'I am somehow inadequate because I don't drive an expensive car or live in a big house'.

 

Try to think about the emotions you notice yourself experiencing today. What beliefs lie behind these feelings? Can you challenge those beliefs?

 

Here are some words you could use that might change the beliefs you hold:

 

'The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing'. Zephaniah 3:17

 

 

Sheila Bridge

[Monday's Devotional] - 1Life… so live it

As Christians we believe that we each are given 'one life'. Hebrews 9:27 says that each of us will only die 'once' which clearly rules out the idea of reincarnation - so we only have this one life in which to get things right.

 

Far from disheartening us, this should act as a big incentive to live our lives in a way that fully expresses who God has made each of us to be. To make a careful examination of ourselves and 'take responsibility for doing the creative best you can with your own life' Galatians 6:4-5 [The Message]

 

But our one life is made up of many aspects. There are many different factors that determine how we live. This week I am going to look at 5 different areas of our lives. Some of us will be doing better in one area than another but in fact all interlock, and all are equally important.

 

Today I want you think about the fact that you are a physical being. You have a body -and if any part of that body is hurting today you know about it. If even a paper cut can be an all day irritant, how much more distressing then is a disabling condition, a frightening diagnosis or simply the irrevocable decline of old age.

 

We are truly fragile beings. We don't even have to be in pain. Simply being too hot, too cold, too thirsty, too sleepy, can pull our lives and reactions seriously out of kilter. In addition to this, if we believe ourselves to be physically unattractive, this lowers our self-confidence and puts us at risk of being less than God created us to be.

 

So, how do you feel today about your body?  Bring those feelings to the Father who says you are his 'masterpiece', the one who cares so much for you he counts the hairs on your head.  Remember that his feelings about you are wholly positive. Remember that in his body, he experienced every kind of pain and distress. But he also graced our human bodies by choosing to have one. He also promises to transform our bodies so that one day we will have a glorious post-resurrection body as he did.  He also only had 'one life' but what a difference he made in the way that he lived it and gave it.

 

Pray: either pray today about the way your physical pain is affecting you or pray for someone you know whose life is dominated by an issue to do with their body.

 

Sheila Bridge

[Friday's Devotional] - Hooray, it's Friday!

 

Hooray! It's Friday. Two days away from that place! Thank goodness for the weekend! How often have we heard that at the end of a working week?

And yet if we had no job and nowhere to go each weekday, how would we feel? For those of us who are retired it's getting used to less money coming in, but more time to do what we want to. While for those seeking employment it has to be worrying and stressful, and little money to boot.

Though overall, we may hate Mondays but we all love Fridays, looking forward to the weekend. Maybe going out Saturday, relaxing with the family Sunday.  Almost makes you want to sing, doesn't it?

 

After all, there's lots to do on Saturday and Sunday is our day of rest. When God   made the earth he rested from his labours on the seventh day. Yes, I know that in these times many people have to work on a Sunday, but they will get their rest on another day. So, hopefully, you will go to church on Sunday and thank the Lord for all the good things that he does for you. You can join in the prayers and you can sing. It doesn't matter whether it's hymns, psalms or worship songs. It's our way of vocally worshipping God, our Father. So when you are in church sing out. Sing to, and for, our Lord. You don't have to be a Pavarotti, Joan Sutherland, Michael Buble or one of the Sugarbabes. Whatever sort of voice you have, sing, sing, sing!

 

As you are singing, think about the words and what they mean, perhaps to you personally for whatever reason. I know sometimes a phrase catches me out, reminds me how much I owe God, and maybe draws me a little bit closer to Him. So this Sunday, on our day of rest, come and sing praises to the Lord. And if you're anywhere near me, let me hear your voice above mine!

 

God Bless you and give you peace this weekend.

 

 

Jim Finch

[Thursday's Devotional] - The Ultimate Read

 

Do you like stories? A lot of people do. Have you read any good books lately? Most of us like a good tale and there are books to suit every taste readily available. Our preferred reading tends to change over the years. As a child we usually start with comics like the Beano, and move on to books like 'Swallows and Amazons' by Arthur Ransome. Well that was how I started, but like most things trends change with the times. The Times? No, I never took to that.

I went on to Science Fiction and Biographies. Michael Moorcock, Harry Harrison and stars of stage and screen.

 

Personally, I enjoy telling stories too. Yes, I am aware that people now expect any story I start turning out to be a joke! But the thing is, you can make any story come alive in the way it is told. On stage a group of people tell a collective story, perhaps a drama, a comedy, or a tragedy. Today a lot of comedians don't tell jokes. They tell stories in an amusing way, or with witty comments. Although they can be coarse and unkind about a variety of things, and that is not funny.

 

However, the best audience to tell stories to are children. In the schools where I tell stories they are, usually, quite attentive, and often have questions to ask about it when the story is done. I always try to tell the story as closely as I can to the book it comes from, although some things have to be omitted or modified slightly. Of course there are vast libraries of books to choose from, but I find all the characters, drama, some comedy, quite a bit of tragedy, and all the human emotions in one book. I use that book for all my stories. It gives the reader and storyteller everything they need.

 

The Holy Bible. The Ultimate Read.

 

 

Jim Finch

[Wednesday's Devotional] - Simplicity

For some of us life just seems to get more technical, complicated, and confusing. There are PCs, Laptops, Mobile phones, Digital cameras and 3D films (to name but a few) seemingly designed to baffle those of us who started all this 'technology' with a crystal set. For those too young to have heard of this, it was an early device for receiving radio signals. To operate this you had to twiddle a small knob which controlled a 'cat's whisker' against a crystal. This altered the frequency of the set till you found the right signal. We thought it was brilliant!

 

Now, if you don't understand the technology of many of the new devices available, you can be totally lost. Still, like me, you will find that your children and grandchildren will try to explain how to work most of these things if you ask them. Although it may be accompanied by comments such as, "It's simple Grandad, you just push this switch and press the right button and there you are."

"No, not that button Grandad, this one!" Within minutes you can be completely brain-dead, and looking for the way out.

It seems that you have to be so in tune with technology to do anything these days, doesn't it?

Actually, no. We have something that outdoes all the most technological devices ever invented.

 

God.

 

You only have to ask. No buttons, no switches, no texting, no digitizing. No clever stuff. You can put all that to one side. Simply take a minute, relax, think what you want to say, and talk to the Lord. All problems, needs, guidance can be offered to him and you will be heard. You may not get the answer at the push of a button, but you will get one in some form, in due course. It will be the right answer, and it doesn't cost a fortune either!

 

Technology can be very clever, very useful, and usually fast. But it still can't compete with God.

 

 

Jim Finch

[Tuesday's Devotional] - Quiet Time

A little peace and quiet. That's what we all need at some point in the day. A little time to ourselves, to switch off from all the hassle of day-to-day life. Hopefully we can all find that vital time, when we can relax and talk to our Lord.

 

You'll notice that I didn't say pray. I'm not too good at praying regularly. Some years ago I remember being given a suggested format for praying to God. It went roughly like this :- First remember to say "thank you" for the good things that have happened. Then say "sorry" for the things you've done wrong (real or imagined), and ask for forgiveness. Then finally make any requests for guidance or other particular needs.

 

I found that quite helpful for a while, but soon found that it was becoming something of a routine. A habit that I'd grown into and now had lost the freshness that it deserved. For a while I broke the routine, trying to find different times, perhaps different places, change the order. Anything to bring back the impetus and the feeling of confidentiality with the Lord, which had faded with the passing of time. Nothing really worked. My praying was stagnating, probably really down to me.

 

Then I wondered if others were having the same problem. How many people in church really thought about, and meant, the words spoken every week when we all say the Lord's Prayer together? It could become just another habit. This is no good. So I simply threw all the rules that I thought were there out the window, sat down quietly, and said "Lord, can we talk please? I'm not doing too well here," and the words flowed and somehow things fell into place and he puts me right. In fact, sometimes I'm only thinking about what I want to say, and the answer is already coming back. Wow!

 

Make your prayers a confidential chat with our Lord. Say what you feel, he always responds.

 

 

Jim Finch

[Monday's Devotional] - Independence Day

 

I'm sure you are all aware that today is Independence Day in America. That means they consider themselves free from the rule of another nation. However, sometimes it means that they think they are above the rule of anyone else. For individuals that can mean they think they are above any sort of rule or normal behaviour, and that can quickly get out of hand. We've all met people who think that and they really don't like it being pointed out.

 

In truth we all like to be independent in our own way. Or, at least, we like to think we are, but perhaps, sometimes we can get close to the "Don't you know who I am?", or, "I thought it was alright because of who and what I am" attitude. Oops! God's great banana skin!

 

Fortunately the Lord has ways of letting us know that we are not totally 'independent', but we are who we are and where we are by his grace. However, we do have one piece of independence given us by God. We are all, in one or more ways, individuals. Of all the billions of people across the world it is impossible to find two that are exactly the same in every way.

Of course we all like as much independence as we can get, but we all need some assistance from time to time. Often family and friends can be a great help, and if not you can't do better than asking God to step in. Go on, he loves you to be dependent on him and he always knows the right way to deliver what is needed.

 

So today, delight in, and thank the Lord for, the 'individual independence' he has given to each of us. We just need to remind ourselves, at times, that he is the one true God – and he is truly independent.

 

 

Jim Finch

[Friday's Devotional] - God Will Provide

"Deus Providebit" was the slogan on the crest in the dining hall of my college. I don't think I really noticed it – one of those things which is part of the furniture and just blends into the background.

 

Then one day I decided to look it up. "God will Provide" is not a bad thing to build on.

 

I'm not sure exactly why it was on the college walls, but I decided to look it up in the Bible. As I looked into it more, I found that this is a theme in a lot of the Bible: God knows what we need, and will provide it.

 

Part of today's reading is a wonderful example of God providing someone's needs:

 

The wife of a man from the company of the prophets cried out to Elisha, "Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that he revered the LORD. But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves."

 

Elisha replied to her, "How can I help you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?"

 

"Your servant has nothing there at all," she said, "except a small jar of olive oil."

Elisha said, "Go around and ask all your neighbors for empty jars. Don't ask for just a few. Then go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side."

She left him and shut the door behind her and her sons. They brought the jars to her and she kept pouring. When all the jars were full, she said to her son, "Bring me another one."

   But he replied, "There is not a jar left." Then the oil stopped flowing.

She went and told the man of God, and he said, "Go, sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left." 2 Kings 4:1-7 [NIV]

 

So What?

"God Will Provide" – I know it in my head, but do I really believe it?

 

Tim Norman

 

Read the Bible in a year: Psalm 78:56-72, 2 Kings 3:1-4:37, Acts 21:1-26