[Friday's Devotional] - Right Person, Right Place, Right Time

Right Person, Right Place, Right Time Life is a series of problem-solving opportunities and the problems we face can bring about change in us and in the places God puts us.  In African churches pastors encourage us to confirm to each other 'you are the right person, in the right place, at the right time', and even though we may feel quite the opposite, God brings good out of those problems we face.  Where we see stress he sees opportunities.  Where we see crisis, He sees growth and betterment. "We can rejoice when we run into problems they help us learn to be patient. And patience develops strength of character in us and helps us trust God more each time we use it until finally our hope and faith are strong and steady." Romans 5:3-4, [TLB] God uses problems to DIRECT us, to INSPECT us, to CORRECT us, to PERFECT us - people are like teabags if you want to know what's inside them, just drop them into hot water!  God is far more interested in our character than our comfort. I would love to declare that this 'teabag' seeped joy in my first 2 months serving here yet, for many reasons, I eventually reached a point of despondency and my cheerfulness and sense of humour failed me.  I shared the situation I found myself in with wise and trusted counsel and was able to transfer department – I love my new role and being able to spend quality time with my husband and my desire to 'finish well' is now a reality. Speaking the truth about the difficult circumstances not only brought about change for me, but suggestions my colleague and I had made that could lightened the load when short-staffed are now making a difference in my old department. Serving on the Africa Mercy and witnessing the life-changing work here has been such a privilege. Wherever God has placed you it is because you are 'the right person, in the right place, at the right time' even when it doesn't feel like it and even though this can be extremely uncomfortable (and sometimes unpopular) God uses it for good until he directs your steps elsewhere. Dawn Milward       Twitter Website Copyright © 2017 St. Matthew & St. Oswald's Church, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email as a subscriber to the Daily Devotionals Our mailing address is: St. Matthew & St. Oswald's Church 1a New Street Rugby, Warwickshire CV22 7BE United Kingdom Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list Want to be added to our mailing list? - sign up here!

[Thursday's Devotional] - A Spacious Place

A Spacious Place­­ I love God's humour in my life, amidst our trials there is always humour.  I remember almost 28 years ago sitting in a hospital room awaiting the results of my son's Cystic Fibrosis test, if positive this is a life-threatening condition for which there is no cure.  Outside the room the doctor who was about to convey the results was telling a joke about cricket to the nurses, I don't remember the joke but I remember thinking the results must be negative, how could he joke if it was devastating news he was about to deliver.  I was shattered and angry when he told us of the positive result, yet later in life I fully understood how humour was probably the only way medical staff can cope with the traumas they encounter every day.  Witnessing the incredible work done in the hospital here on-board the Africa Mercy only affirms that, in the midst of despair there is joy as the workers sing and dance every day in the wards, it is indeed an uplifting tonic for those lying in the hospital beds.   As I prayed about a 'spacious place' the Lord reminded me of the verse I used when setting up my blog home-page from Mozambique in 2008, and the particular translation I used, I love it:   "Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me.  Get away with me and you'll recover your life.  I'll show you how to take a real rest.  Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly." Matthew 11:28-30 [MSG]   As I rolled with the unforced rhythms of grace I was offered a transfer to Ward Admin Assistant, the role being the same working hours and days as Chris and indeed a 'spacious place' to finish our last few weeks here enjoying time together as we serve.   When going to the ship-shop I again experienced the Lord's humour - I was drawn to a bottle of washing up liquid affirming that 'spacious place' - the Lord has one waiting for us all.   Dawn Milward Twitter Website Copyright © 2017 St. Matthew & St. Oswald's Church, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email as a subscriber to the Daily Devotionals Our mailing address is: St. Matthew & St. Oswald's Church 1a New Street Rugby, Warwickshire CV22 7BE United Kingdom Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list Want to be added to our mailing list? - sign up here!

[Wednesday's Devotional] - Because He Delights In Me

Because He Delights In Me "He brought me out into a spacious place; he rescued me because he delighted in me­­" 2 Samuel 22:20 [NIV]   He delights in us! "Delight" can be defined as "someone that provides a source of happiness; 'a joy to behold.'"  Wow.  We hear many times in different verses in the Bible to delight ourselves in the Lord (which is most definitely truth), but how often do we remember that he finds delight in us?   "For the LORD your God is living among you. He is a mighty saviour. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs." Zephaniah 3:17 [NLT]   Not only does God delight in us, he sings over us!  I'm sure Jesus must have danced too (although there is no mention of this in scripture) this came to mind when Mercy Shippers were invited to lunch with the King of Abomey and his 42 wives!  I thought our friend Lyndy was going to be wife number 43 after shaking her booty so well.  Jesus was no party-pooper, he was invited to weddings and to peoples' houses to eat and drink.  He was applauded and approached by little children, he was a lot of fun to be around.  He was even accused of being a glutton and a drunkard and spent time with various unsavoury types… and he was a general irritant to most of the respectable and well-schooled religious types of his day, causing division and confusion nearly everywhere he went.  Dancing was probably among the least offensive and/or uncomfortable things that Jesus did!    He came to give us a 'full life'. This is joy indescribable, it is given by a joyful Jesus who 'delights in us' we are his beloved.  It is the very key to our deliverance from every battle that rages within our souls.  It is the secret to entering into the rest God has promised us.  When we lay hold of it and it becomes a foundation of truth in our heart—we will be able to withstand the trials of life.   Dawn Milward   Twitter Website Copyright © 2017 St. Matthew & St. Oswald's Church, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email as a subscriber to the Daily Devotionals Our mailing address is: St. Matthew & St. Oswald's Church 1a New Street Rugby, Warwickshire CV22 7BE United Kingdom Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list Want to be added to our mailing list? - sign up here!

[Tuesday's Devotional] - He Rescues Us

He Rescues Us While sitting on the pool deck in between shifts I would meditate on the verse: "He brought me out into a spacious place; he rescued me because he delighted in me­­" 2 Samuel 22:20 [NIV]   For all of us there are times of joy, but there are also times when, like David, we may feel like we are swimming against the tide or drowning; I had to smile as I looked at the life ring at the side of the pool, described in the dictionary as a 'lifebuoy, ring buoy, life preserver is a life-saving buoy designed to be thrown to a person in the water, to provide buoyancy and prevent drowning.'   I have learnt much from the warm people here in Benin, just as I did in Mozambique, even in the most difficult of circumstances and abject poverty they have a 'buoyant' joy which is truly humbling.   When the going gets tough we're left with seemingly nothing to do but throw our hands up for help, in doing this God finds the perfect excuse to take hold of them with His. We might not know what to say or do, but when we cry out to Him, He hears us and, at the given time, grabs our hands and pull us out of the water that we may feel ourselves sinking deeper and deeper into and takes us to a safe ­­place. He doesn't just plop us down on the edge because of the heavy baggage we carry, he takes us to a spacious place; not where hopelessness lives, but where rescue is.   The Son of Man did not come to seek and save the "fine, the sorted and the smiling". We need to trust our brothers and sisters in Christ with the truth about how we are doing—how we're really doing. That doesn't mean we need to tell everyone all that is going on in our lives but when we confide in others, it is a place of progress, not perfection.   "A sorrow shared is but half a trouble, but a joy that's shared is a joy made double." Old proverb.    Dawn Milward   Twitter Website Copyright © 2017 St. Matthew & St. Oswald's Church, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email as a subscriber to the Daily Devotionals Our mailing address is: St. Matthew & St. Oswald's Church 1a New Street Rugby, Warwickshire CV22 7BE United Kingdom Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list Want to be added to our mailing list? - sign up here!

[Monday's Devotional] - Ebbs & Flows

Ebbs & Flows It is hard to believe that this is the last week for Chris and I aboard the Africa Mercy, as our 3 months here draws to a close, it has been an incredible adventure and a privilege to serve in a community dedicated to 'bringing Hope & Healing to the World's Forgotten Poor'.   One of my favourite places on-board (other than seeing the crew singing and dancing with the patients in the hospital) is the pool deck.   The pool has been a great place to relax and have my quiet time and due to the pool moving with the motion of the ocean it ­­sounds like lapping waves.  However, when swimming I would feel as if I were swimming against the tide, it was so difficult and I felt that I was making no progress, then, all of a sudden, the wave would catapult me along to the other end! It would make me laugh every time as I never knew when the big 'push' would come.   Our spiritual journey and day to day life is a series of ebbs and flows or high tides and low tides.   While Chris' time here has been 'plain sailing', my first 2 months were tough due to a shortage of staff in my department and shift-work.  Even on weekends as Chris said 'Good morning' I said 'Goodnight' – we were like ships that passed in the night, however, just because we don't feel God in the 'low tide' places, it doesn't mean He is not there!  A verse the Lord kept bringing to mind and that I meditated on was a Psalm of David:   "He reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters………….. he brought me out into a spacious place; he rescued me because he delighted in me." Psalm 18:19 [NIV]   David was a praying man and God is found in prayer. If you feel as if you are swimming against the tide right now, ask God to bring you into a 'spacious place'. Reminders of His love for us and His hand on our lives provides opportunities for us to breathe freely until God turns the tide. Dawn Milward Twitter Website Copyright © 2017 St. Matthew & St. Oswald's Church, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email as a subscriber to the Daily Devotionals Our mailing address is: St. Matthew & St. Oswald's Church 1a New Street Rugby, Warwickshire CV22 7BE United Kingdom Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list Want to be added to our mailing list? - sign up here!