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Potential instead of Neat and Tidy…. On a personal level.

I wrote about potential being more important than neat and tidy a couple of weeks back. That post centred on potential in the church. (Link here.)

As I have shared this thought with other people, the thought has developed a bit, onto a personal level.

So, in our own lives, will we favour neat and tidy over potential for development?

It’s like, we can have boxes stored away in the cupboard, of our lives, all neat and tidy. Then God comes along and says to us,
“That box that you have stored away so tidily, take it out and pour it’s contents all over the table, and then we can have a look at it.”

If you are anything like me, then this could cause you a little (or a lot) of discomfort. But our Loving Heavenly Father is more concerned about our potential, and our overall well being, rather than a small amount of discomfort.

You see, there are some things that He will put His finger on and tell us that they are for the bin. (He will help us with the disposal process.)
He may then take two pieces at opposite ends of the table and then bring them together and explain to us how they are meant to be this way.
He may then do many things with the contents, some of which may make immediate sense, and other actions that may need a bit of time for us to see the reason.

In short He will make a masterpiece out of the contents of the box which we would have rather kept locked away. But for this masterpiece to be made, we need to hand the box over to Him and allow Him to have His way with it.

So when He asks for something in our lives, whether it be large or small, will we hand it over to Him.
Will we allow Him to have His way in our lives, so that He can then make us closer to the masterpiece that He sees that we could be?

Father,
Help us to always say yes to You.
Help us to be willing to let You have Your way in our lives.
Help us to know that we can trust You, for You do have our best interests at heart.
Amen.

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Are we Distracted by Pretty Lights?

As I sat down with my morning cup of tea, I absently minded reached over to pick up my tablet to look at ……. ,when the thought “Why don’t you put that down and talk to me instead” came you my mind.

OK, put that down.
Sorry Lord, you should be the first thought on my mind, but so many times You are not. I can only say sorry.

Then the thought, “Are you so easily distracted by pretty lights?” Came to my mind.

The answer should be no, but clearly I am. 😦

There are just so many pretty lights calling out for my attention.
Tablet, smart phone, games of many kinds and the biggest of them all, probably the TV.
As I said, so many pretty lights calling out for my attention.

So what do all these pretty lights give to me?

On the most part, they give to me a distraction, a passing of the time.
I know some pretty lights can be useful, such as reading something that draws you closer to God. (Such as a post like this one ….. maybe 🙂 )
But how many times do we just whittle away the hours by just being distracted by all them pretty lights?

Are we sooo drawn to them that we can end being like the fly caught in the glare of the fly zapper, being drawn to its end?

Could we do better?

Could we put them pretty lights down and spend some time with our Loving Heavenly Father instead?
(Could we end up writing a post about the distractions of pretty lights? 🙂 )

When all is said and done, what are we doing with our time?
Are we allowing ourselves to just be distracted or are we doing something that is worth while?
Are we going to do something that will last?
Investing time in your eternal resting place is always going to be a good investment! Or to put it another way, spending time with your Loving Heavenly Father in the here and now is always going you be a worth while thing to do.

Father,
I am sorry that I am so easily distracted by pretty lights.
I am sorry that so many times I just go looking for them, instead of seeking You.
Please help me your be more aware of You, all the time.
Help me to hear Your words to me, that much better, so that I can then put them into action.
Amen.

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What can the Kingdom of Heaven be Likened to?

This is going to be a picture which is a bit similar to a parable given by Jesus. This is a variation of the picture, so please don’t go looking for this version in the bible, you won’t find it. 🙂

The Kingdom of Heaven can be likened to a very rich man’s mansion, out in the country side.

Inside the mansion was the most exquisite luxury.
No expense had been spared. Everything was the best, but also everything was tastefully done. There was a real class to all that had been done, no tackiness could be found anywhere.

Outside the mansion, it was a different story.
It was in the country side. It was also a wet boggy type of terrain. Not to mention the many cows that roamed the land, leaving behind the inevitable cow pats.

Everyone who walked about in the country side couldn’t help but have the mud stick to them. All had fallen over or slipped in the mud at some point in time. Many had fallen foul of the many cow pats that littered the land.
Many would clean themselves in the river. But it was a muddy river, and as soon as one left the river, well, they were back in the muddy terrain all over again.

The rich man had a very kind and generous heart and he wanted to share all that he had with everyone. But how could he? If he opened the doors to his mansion and let all come in, then in moments his home would be destroyed by the dirt, mud and cow pats of anyone who entered.

So the rich man put a plan into action.
He put an extension to his mansion at the entrance. He had a washroom added.
It was done at a great expense. But put in place it was.

Now the rich man had the means to invite the people outside his mansion, in. And invite them in he did.

He showed them to the washroom were they could be cleaned of all the dirt, mud and cow pats that covered them. He then also gave them fresh new clothes of the finest quality and warmly welcomed his guests in. “Come, enjoy and share in all the goodness that I have” the rich man would exclaim, with great gladness in his heart.

All who entered by the washroom could now freely enjoy all that the rich man had for all time. There was no limit to the rich man’s generosity for all who entered by the washroom.

Now let’s suppose that someone had managed to enter the mansion by a different route other than the washroom. (I know that this would be an impossibly as the rich man also had the best security that could be obtained.) But let’s suppose this scenario happened.

How would the one who entered by the wrong route feel?
How would you feel if it was you?
How would you feel if you were covered in all the dirt, mud and cow pats of outside, in an absolutely luxurious surroundings?
How would you feel knowing that you stank to the highest order, and nobody else did?

How would the rich man respond to you?

Would he possibly say, “Friend, you are welcome to enjoy all that I have, but you must enter by the washroom. It was put in place at great expense just for you, so that you could join me.”
(Strictly speaking, this part is not in the parables that Jesus spoke, but I do believe that it would be the Father’s heart.)

If one who was challenged (who was covered in dirt) then said, “I don’t need any wash room. I’m going to enjoy some of that fine food over there, then I’m going to sit on the fine white sofa and put my feet up on that table.” Then how will the rich man respond?

The rich man would then summon his security (which was the best of the best) and have the intruder bound hand and foot and thrown outside, were there will be much weeping and gnashing of teeth. (That bit can be found in Jesus’s parables. (Matthew 22:13 for the bible version.))

I do believe that heaven and hell are true realities and that one day, every one will enter one or the other.

We all start off in the country side in the picture.
We all are covered in the dirt and muck of our surroundings.
We all need to enter the Kingdom of Heaven (the mansion) by the washroom.

The washroom in the picture is Jesus, the Lamb of God who has paid the price for all that we have done wrong.

In order to be cleaned, all we need to do is come to Jesus, to accept and acknowledge Him as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, and then ask Him to enter our hearts and lives.
We most probably have things to repent of, (say sorry for and try to turn away from) but Jesus invites us to come just as we are.
We don’t need to keep going to the muddy river to try to make ourselves good enough for God. No, God tells us to go to Jesus and He WILL cleanse us.

John 3:16-18
16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.

If you haven’t already asked Jesus into your heart and life, then please do consider doing so.
It will be the best decision you’ll ever make to enter on into His Kingdom and His Love.
All you need to do is to say “Yes” to Him, Our Lord God Almighty.

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Will you play your part?

Have you ever seen one of those marble run videos?
You know the ones were a single ball is set into motion that then moves something else that then releases the next ball, and then so it goes on.
Eventually a flag is flown or or a cannon is fired (or something else) and the run is finished.

For it to all come together, everything needs to be set up just so, so that the run will not be stopped. Everything needs to be ready and waiting to play it’s part, and then when the time comes, it needs to do the right thing. (Have you guessed where I’m going with this yet?)

In the church (or our Father’s house) we all have a part to play.
Are we willing to play our part?
Do we want to be part of what our Heavenly Father wants to achieve?

Hopefully the answer is yes to that one.

If the answer is yes, then will you do your bit, that God is asking you to do?

In the marble run each little element on its own doesn’t look very impressive, but when it’s all put together, that’s when the magic appears.
When everything is doing what it’s meant to.

When we follow what our Heavenly Father wants us to do, then we can be like one of those small elements in the long marble run. We can be part of something that is so much bigger than ourselves.
We can be part of the magic, if we say yes to our Heavenly Father.

Sometimes we might know what we are doing and sometimes we may not. Sometimes we might know why, and other times we may not know why we are being asked to do …….. .
But if our Heavenly Father is asking us to do something (and we know that it’s Him who is asking), then will we do it?

I’m not just talking about the big things, like go to another country and be a light for those in darkness (a good call to answer if you are asked though 🙂 ).
But I’m talking about the small things.
The things where you think, that’s so small and silly, surely that’s just me being silly?

What if it’s not?
What if it’s your chance to play a small role in the larger marble run?
What if it’s your chance to be part of the magic?
Your opportunity to bless someone else in a way that would just blow your mind!

A smile or a kind word at just the right moment could change a life!

Do you want to be a life changer, someone who is willing to talk to someone, when prompted to (by your Loving Heavenly Father)?

Will you be willing to do whatever He asks you to do? It could be so small such as pray for ….. or just give so and so a call.

When we say yes to these moments, then we can be part of something that is so much bigger than just us.
We can be part of His Loving Plan to bless others.

Father,
Help me to hear Your voice that much more clearly.
Help me to say YES to You, when You prompt me to do something.
My Loving Heavenly Father.
Amen.

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Six of one, and half a dozen of another?

This might possibly be a follow on from last week’s post.
Hopefully it will also stand up all on it’s own.

If you try your hand at something new, then how do you feel when trying it for the first time?

If you finish something and then offer it up, but then someone else looks at it and then just adds a little extra, then how can you end up feeling?

For me it can be a case of, six of one snd half a dozen of another.

First reaction can be, did I get it wrong????
Is there a valid reason to why this little extra has been added?
Should I have done this little extra in the first place?

Next reaction (or even the first) could be, ….
What have you done with my work????
It was finished!
Nothing else was needed.
Why have you ruined what I have just done?

So, was the little extra needed in the first place???

Read the title of this post for the answer to that one.

The real question of this post is, how will you react, if someone adds a little extra to what you have just done?

Will you take offence and be upset by …… being done?
This is where the enemy can whisper in our ears, “Just look at what they have done!” Or, “How dare they do ……. with what you have just done.”

If we listen to this thought pattern, then upset is very likely to follow, along with disillusionment possibly not far behind. Which could then possibly leave us with the thought of, “Next time I just won’t even bother trying.”
Not a good place to end up at.

Or could we look at extra, and then do it ourselves the next time we try to do …… ?
Does the extra actually improve what has already been done?
Is it an enhancement to ……… ?

In order to see any improvements to what we have just done, then we need to be willing to see that things can be done better.

To do this we need to be willing to take on guidance from an outside source. (Even if we don’t initially agree with it.)

Sometimes, whether the extra is needed can be black and white.
There can be a definite answer and someone needs to be corrected. (This could so easily be either party involved.)

But more often than not, we can find ourselves in shades of grey, or to put it another way, differences of opinion.

How do we deal with it, when it could be a difference of opinion, that is at the root of the extra being added?

Will we try to rally people to our Way of thinking?
Look, this is actually how it is!
Or will you just hear what I am saying. ????

But is this just trying to justify your point of view?

Can we do better than this?

Could we try to understand what has happened?
Could we try to bring understanding to the one who brought the extra, without causing offence? (Sometimes this may not be an easy task to achieve.)

If we are the one who brought the extra, then how will we react if someone challenges the extra that was brought?
Will we be able to see the others point of view?

Sometimes we can have the best of motives, but the waters can become very muddied without our realising it. Will we also seek to understand the others point of view and then try to respect it, even if it differs from our own?

As a Christian I can also bring the whole thing to my Heavenly Father, for Him to help and guide me in how I should deal with ……
When I do this, will I then listen to His answer/s?
Will I listen if He then corrects me?
Will I listen to to method of how to deal with……. ?

It’s going to be better to listen to my Heavenly Father for how to deal with ……. , rather than to run off on my own and then try to correct or ignore …….. .

Father,
Misunderstanding is what the enemy would love to sow among us.
Help us to be aware of his attempts to disrupt us.
Help us your look to You, Our Loving Heavenly Father, for understanding in place of upset.
Help us to see and understand each other.
Help us to see that different doesn’t necessarily mean wrong, it can sometimes just be different.
Help us to look to You that much more, if we are feeling misunderstood. Amen.

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Will you see Potential instead of Neat and Tidy?

This post is going to start from a slightly random place, but I do ask that you don’t give up on it to quickly. It is going somewhere. 🙂

There is a game I play on my phone. I won’t give the name of the game as I’d rather not be advertising games. 🙂
It is however a puzzle type game.
Blocks of different shapes are given and you have to place them on a board to make lines, columns or boxes for the shapes to then be removed from the board.

Now I can tend to have a neat and tidy way about me. (Not that you can tell this from the mess I leave behind me at times 🙂 )
When I first started playing the game, I tried to place the pieces on the board in a neat and tidy way. It soon became clear to me that this was not a good tactic. The board would soon close up and the message “No space available” would soon appear, meaning Game Over.

I soon came to the conclusion that neat and tidy didn’t work and that developing potential for lines or boxes to be completed was a better way to go forward.
I had to change my thinking.

One time as I was playing, thinking about looking for potential over neat and tidy, I had the thought,
“Is neat and tidy in the church the best thing to be aiming for, or is looking for potential more important?”

Please don’t get me wrong here. There is a need for order in the church.
But if we are so set on having everything done in such a way, because that’s the way it’s always been done and it works, then are we trying to make things too neat and tidy?
Are we missing potential, because we like neat and tidy?

As an example, if we have someone new to try and do a task that has been done for a while, then how will they do?
Will they get everything correct from the start?
Probably not. They will need time to learn how to do the task. They may get things back to front. They could even come up with a better way of how to do …… (It’s possible.)
When we look at them as they start, will we think, they are just not neat and tidy, or will we be able to see the potential that they have?
Can we see them as they will be instead of how they are now?

When we look at people in the church, will we be able to see the potential in them, instead of where they are now?
Will we be able to act in a way to promote the potential in others, or will we be looking to keep things neat and tidy?

We are all a work in progress!
A masterpiece in the making! (If we allow God to have His way.)
Will we be able to see this?
Will others see the masterpiece that we will be and will we see the masterpiece that they will be?
Can we bear with the rough edges of …… as the masterpieces are formed?

Father,
We do need a certain amount of order in all things, but please help us to know what is good for us and what is not so good.
Help us to see the potential that You see.
Help us to know and trust You, so that we can follow Your ways, wherever they may lead us, even if it seems a bit untidy at times.
Help us to keep in step with You.
Amen.

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Will You Offer up Your Ink Blot Picture?

I think that pictures are great!
Hold on a minute, I think that I need to properly validate that statement.
I think that pictures (when given from God) are great!

That little bit in the middle makes a huge difference, to the statement.

When I get a picture, I see a small portion of the picture. I speak out (a form of painting 🙂 ) the picture that I see in my head. My Heavenly Father sees the bigger picture, and at His direction, my small picture can then be magnified by what He does with it.

I’ll try to explain what is going on in my head a bit better.
I do my small part, sometimes having some idea of where I’m going and sometimes just trusting. Father then comes along and does so much more that I just didn’t see with what I have just done.
I’m then just left with the thought of, WOW, You are just so GOOD Lord!

It can be like I paint a small picture, and then others see all the bits that I didn’t paint. Father comes along and makes the picture so much bigger!

In my mind I have an ink blott picture, but others see a masterpiece. (Sometimes, that is. 🙂 )

Now inkblot pictures can be very funny things.
To one person they can be nothing, to another rage and to another pure love. The difference is interpretation.

Now if Our Heavenly Father is involved with the interpretation, then the same inkblot picture can be whatever it needs to be at any particular time to the person who needs it.

For my inkblot picture to bless somebody else, I don’t need to have the interpretation! I just need to offer up my inkblot picture. (Even if I think, this is just a mess. 🙂 )

Did you know that? You can bless someone without even knowing quite what it is that you are doing.

My wife does this as a matter of routine now.
She used to say to me, so and so has just come to my mind, what does that mean? My off the cuff response was, “Well just pray for them then.”
She did. But now she does this almost automatically. I have even joined her in praying for …… at times.

In short my wife’s inkblot picture can be, ……. has come to my mind, I’ll pray them.

The real question is, When God gives you an inkblot picture to share, will you then share it?
Will you share it even if you don’t understand it?
Will you share it, even if you think that it’s going to make you look a bit silly?
Will you share it and allow God to bless someone else through what you share in Him?
Instead of hiding it away, will you allow your inkblot picture to be a fragrant offering that is acceptable, to your Loving Heavenly Father?

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The Fence in the Wind.

At church this morning my wife shared a picture with somebody. It was such a good picture that I thought I just have to write about that one. 🙂

The essence of what she said was, I’m reminded of the time when we had all them high winds and our fence was looking a bit unstable. It looked as if the wind was going to blow the fence down. Then my husband went and got a big piece of metal and put it into the ground and then used a piece of rope to hold the fence in place. (I effectively made an industrial strength tent peg and guy line.) Having God, Jesus in our lives is a bit like that metal and rope in place. He supports us when we would otherwise be blown down.

I told you it was good.
I also think that it is very much so true.
We can all have winds which can blow against us, some of which could overpower us if we are left to stand in our own strength. Having Jesus in our lives gives us an extra strength that we can call on, so that we don’t need to rely fully on our own strength, but can look to someone who is greater than us to help and guide us in all that we do.

In order to gain access to this extra strength, all we need to do is ask for God, Jesus to come into our lives. It can be as simple as asking, “Jesus, please come into to my life, help me to know You.”

If you haven’t already asked Jesus into your life, then I ask you to consider doing so. He can be the extra help and strength that you never knew you needed. He has so much Goodness for you if you will just ask Him in.

Below is a prayer that you could use to ask Jesus into your life.

Jesus,
Please come into my life.
I invite you into my heart and life, all that I am.
I may not fully know what it its that I’m doing, but I invite You, all the same.
I’m sorry that I’ve not done this before and I am sorry for the things that I gave got wrong in the past.
I ask that You will help me from this point onward.
I ask that You will be an extra strength in my life, so that I can be a stronger version of who I am.
Help to to hear and follow Your ways.
Thank you that You accept me as Your child.
Amen.

If you have just said this prayer for the first time, then can I encourage you to tell someone.
If you know someone who is a Christian, then I would encourage you to tell them of your decision to ask Jesus into your life.
I would like to personally say, “Welcome to the family and may your Lord God Bless you Greatly!”

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Some things you can only appreciate, if you experience them.

This is another one of them posts that I’m kind of reluctant to write.
However, all I can do is try to start it, and see if it goes anywhere.

(I’ve just re-read this post, and it feels a bit raw to me. I put this down to it being hot off the press, or written in real time. Effectively, it’s all happened and been written this week. Hoping this blesses somebody.)

This is going to be about a not so pleasant experience, but hopefully it will have a positive twist by the end. So please try to stick with it.

I’ve done something to my heels just recently. They are both feeling very much so bruised. I have no idea of what has caused it, but it hurts to put any weight on them.
This is a problem when it comes to walking, as you can’t walk without putting weight on your heels.
I’ve tried to walk just using the front part of my feet, but that doesn’t work either. I can still feel the pain in my heels and it also puts more strain on different parts of my legs, which I’m thinking could then cause me different problems with my legs.

What does this actually mean for me at the moment?
It means that I want to do very little.
It also means that I’m very much so confused, because there are things that I want to/need to do, but to do them means pain on some level. I would rather just sit on the sofa (which irritates me).
Sitting on the sofa isn’t plain sailing either.
Trying to find a position for my feet that I find comfortable can be a puzzle all of its own, and there just doesn’t seem to be any one solution that will just work. Just partial solutions that work for a short time.
Just walking to the toilet is awkward, but that is one thing that just has to be done.

So why am I writing all this?
The answer is the title of this blog. Some things you can only appreciate if you experience them.

I’ve spoken to a couple of people who have had serious trouble with their legs. I thought that I had some kind of idea of what life was like for them.
I didn’t, and I probably still don’t.
Unless you experience it, then how can you truly know it?

You might think that you understand what these past days have been like for me by what you have just read, but you can’t know it unless you’ve had a similar experience.
What I have written is just a small glimpse of what has happened for me these past days. Hopefully my heels/legs will return normal soon, and then life will return to normal. (Well, as normal as normal can be.)
So you, or myself can’t truly know what it is to experience this on a long term basis. (I certainly hope not to experience this on a longer time scale.)

Now, I said that there was going to be a twist, and here it comes.

When it comes to the things of God, you do need to experience them to appreciate them.

You can read all about God, but unless you put the things you read into practice, then you will never truly know them. (Or more importantly, Him.) You can know of the goodness that God has for you, but unless you truly walk it, then you can ever truly know it?

So are you willing to put the knowledge you have of God into practice?

If you don’t know God personally, then will you ask Him into your life? Will you try to have an experience with God, instead of just having a head knowledge?

If you already know God, then will you say yes to Him all the more, and then have a greater experience of all the goodness that He has for you?

So what do I mean by saying yes to God?
Me writing this post when I didn’t want to is one such example.
I kind of thought that it could be a bit self centred and look at me and my little pity party. (Hopefully the real reason for this post will come through. 🙂 )
It is my hope that someone will be encouraged to enter into more of Our Lord God Almighty by reading this. That they may be inspired to say Yes to Him for the first time, or even in a new deeper way.

Unless we do say yes to Our Lord God Almighty, then how else can we truly know Him in a greater measure?
It really is one of those things that you need to experience, in order to truly understand it.

Father,
Whether it is a small thing or a big thing that You are asking us to do, please help us to have a willingness to say YES to you, all the more.
Help us to have a confidence that we can trust You in all things.
Our Loving Father.
Amen.

_________________________________________

This is already a longer post than I intended, but there is an update on how my feet are. So for me this is Part 2.

Two days ago, as I was going to bed, I was starting to feel better.
I was starting to be able to put some weight on my left leg and with my fancy homemade walking stick (an aluminium pole covered in reflective red and white tape, plus a round topper) I was able to go to the supermarket to do some shopping with my wife. (She had the trolley, as she is disabled and has trouble walking every day.) We must have looked a bit of a sight, two people hobbling about, one with a fancy stick and one with the trolley. 🙂

As I was going to bed I was hoping I was past the worst of it.

The next morning, yesterday, I was very much so mistaken.
The pain had returned with a vengeance. I managed to have a shower. (In part, thanks to the grab handles we have for my wife.) But as I was washing my legs I noticed a raised bump on my left leg, on the front near to the ankle. I also noticed a similar, but smaller bump on the other leg, slightly higher up.

Now the increase in pain and these bumps freaked me out.
“What’s going on now! I thought I was getting better.”
I almost came to the point of tears (OK, I may have shed a couple.)
It’s at this point that I cried out to The Lord in a new way, “Please, just HELP me.” Was the general plea.

I don’t like to seek medical help, but the time had now come. (Or was overdue.)
I tried calling 111, (Our NHS medical help line number.) To hear the message of “All our operators are busy, you could try our online service, or hold.”
OK 111 online it is then. Then answering what seems like endless questions.
The service asks questions to rule out the more severe things first.
Is this a time to be thankful for endless questions?
Am I blessed by all these questions as things are not as bad as they could be?????? (Yes is most probably the answer here.)

I get to the end of the questions and I am told to contact my doctor. (Not feeling hopeful about this one.)

To cut a long story short, I phoned the doctors surgery to be greeted with options to choose from. (Press 1 for ….) For the several options I selected, the phone either went dead or gave a recorded message, then went dead. I tried a phone number, one of the messages gave me, to then hear a message of, “Our offices are closed at present, please call back at …..”.

“AAAARRRRRRR” Where is the help?

I go back to the doctors surgery number and select what I think is the wrong option, and finally, I manage to speak to a person.

I am told all appointments are gone and there is no availability to see a doctor. (I was expecting this, hence my reluctance to try.)
However, I was told I could be referred to a pharmacist. (It didn’t take too long for me to say yes to this.)

Again, to try and cut a long story short. I had two more phone calls.
I think one was possibly a doctor.
And then I finally went to the pharmacist, to see her in person.
She thought the bump was an insect bite. (Such relief. I’ve been blessed with an insect bite, and it’s nothing more serious. 🙂 )
She then goes on to tell me that what I had spoken to her, can take up to two weeks to recover from….

I’m now starting to feel like a bit of a fraud at this point.
You see, as I was walking to the pharmacy I had my fancy stick with me, thinking “I don’t need this, at this moment in time.”
There had been some time between the initial phone calls and me seeing the pharmacist, and my legs were doing better.
Looking back I’m thinking, “Is this the luck of the Lord?” (I’ll explain that phrase in a bit.)

In short was my Loving Father doing a work in me, even as I was trying what the world had to offer?

I would like to say that I have been touched by God and healed, but there hasn’t been any sudden healing, just a slow getting better.
However, we are talking hours instead of weeks.
That was lucky then! 🙂
Or was it actually the luck of the Lord….
Or to put it another way, Blessings from my Lord God Almighty.

The phrase, “The luck of the Lord”, is something that I have heard Ian Green say when he has visited our church in the past.
The general idea goes that good things follow when you follow the prompting of your Heavenly Father.
Obedience leads to blessings.

Yesterday morning, things looked so bad that I went searching in the world for help and answers.
I also did the best thing I could.
I cried out to my Heavenly Father.
The world said two weeks to recover.
This morning I can do a partial stamp of my feet on the ground.
That was not anywhere in my thoughts yesterday.
That sounds rather lucky to me, the Luck of the Lord…. ???? 🙂
Blessings from a Heavenly Father?
I’ll just say, Yes, Thank You and Amen to that one.

It really is something that you just have to experience to appreciate.
So if your Heavenly Father, your Lord God Almighty, prompts you to do something, then try to say yes to Him.
Blessings follow obedience.

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Keys to the Kingdom

I went out to my car, to go to work, this morning. As I put my hand in my pocket, I suddenly realised that I didn’t have my keys with me.
Now the car belongs to me. I have every right to use it. I have insurance and an MOT for it, but without the keys I was going nowhere.

Not too much of a problem really. I just went back inside my home, picked up the keys and then I could use my car to go to work.

The thought, “The keys to the Kingdom are yours for the taking, will you pick them up and take them with you?”, came to me.

We have so much available to us, but do we truly know this?
Or do we view it as, Yes I can see all the potential that is available (as in the car sitting on the driveway) but is it really for me (are the keys to the car really in my pocket?)

Matthew 7:11
If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

Our Father does indeed have good gifts for us.
So, will we pick them up and make use of them?
Will we continue to walk in obedience to Him, and thus remain in His Power and Authority.

Father,
Thank you that You do have so much goodness to pour into our lives.
Help us to see this, accept it and to walk in Your goodness.
Help us to pick up and make use of the gifts that You direct us to.
Help us to remain obedient to You, so that we can remain in Your Power and Authority.
Our Loving Father.
Amen.