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Who Are You Speaking For?

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Ephesians 4:26
26 “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry,

Who has fallen short of the above scripture? … At times, I have. 😦

If we are truly honest with ourselves, then would we all be putting our hands up?

For those of us who have our hands up, who do we represent, in those moments?
Whose agenda, are we pushing forward?

Now I do think that I should point out that there can be a righteous anger, that can motivate us to do good, when we see an injustice. But, that is not the anger that I’m considering here.
(Although, even in the case of righteous anger, can we allow the anger to take hold of the driving position, a little bit too much???)

If we do allow our anger to start directing our actions, it’s in these moments, that we may need to reflect, and then ask,
“Whose beat was I dancing to?
Whose agenda, was I working towards?”
(We may not like the answers to them questions.)

Some pointers to the answers for those questions, could be to ask, was my actions, something that is building up, or tearing down?

If it was a tearing down, was it done in a loving way?

How was the delivery service?
Could it have been a case of, “I have a hot cup of tea for you, and your going to have it, even if it means, I’m going to throw it at you!!!” … ???

If we have fallen short on this subject matter, then can we try to do better, the next time, that we feel, we might end up regretting our actions?
(Even those micro events, that we kind of, just discount???)

When we have fallen short, then we do need to remember that Our Heavenly Father is waiting for us to return to Him.

1 John 1:5-10
5 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.

Ephesians 4:26-27
26 “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 and do not give the devil a foothold.

____________________

If this post has been a bit too much of … anything for you, then do consider reading Ephesians Chapter 4.
It’s much more uplifting and will give you a proper context for the scripture.

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The Answer, is so Simple.

What’s the number, under the car?

In the above picture, there are several car parking spaces, that are empty, but with one space occupied by a car. What’s the number, under the parked car?

The answer is, genuinely, simple. It’s so simple, that you maybe annoyed by not seeing it sooner, when you know what the answer is.
It’s one of those puzzles where, gaining the right perspective, will reveal the answer, with very little explanation.

The answer to the puzzle, will be revealed, later in this post.

There is a point to my sharing this puzzle here. If we can gain a right perspective, then the answers, can become, that much easier and simpler to understand.

Sometimes, our thinking may need to be turned upside down, in order to gain a right perspective. We may not like the idea, that we’ve had things round the wrong way, for any amount of time. But if that is the case, then wouldn’t we be better off, if we can gain a correct perspective?

(The answer to the problem is about to be revealed, if you want to try to work out the solution, if there are any who haven’t worked it out by now, then stop reading/scrolling down now.)

Below, is an exact copy of the above picture, but with one small difference. It’s been turned around by 180 degrees. It’s been turned, upside down, or more to the point, it’s been turned around, so that it can be viewed from the right perspective.

Can you now tell me, what the number, under the car is?

I do hope that you are not too annoyed by this, but that you can see the fun in this picture.

That, which was so difficult to see, when it was the wrong way around, is so simple to see, once we can gain a correct perspective.

For me, knowing that God is Real, and that God Loves us, and wants to know us, personally, has been like viewing the picture, from the right perspective.

I just Know what the Truth is now, and the more that I look into these matters, the more I Know, that it is true.
That God is Real, and that God Loves us, and wants to know us, personally.

If you don’t already have a correct belief about God, then would you like to have the opportunity, to gain a correct perspective?

A starting point could be, to ask, “God, if you are real, then please, show yourself to me?”

If God, really is real (which I know that He is) then wouldn’t it be that much better, to be aware of this, so that you could then make an informed decision, about the things of God, rather than having an upside down view of the situation, which can lead to struggling to understanding, what’s going on?

So, if you are not already a believer, then would you consider asking the question below?

God, if you are genuinely real, then please reveal yourself to me?

____________________

Below are a couple of links to other posts. If one just stands out you, then please consider clicking on that one.

Is God Real???

It can be good, to be reminded of the obvious.

Knowing The Truth, can Change your Perspective!

The Rope and The Thread

More posts, for those who would like to search out, the truth.

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Some Things are Good, to Not Consume!

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I was cycling home, when I suddenly saw a black dot, just in front of me, that then hit my mouth, and fortunately, then bounced away.

I immediately thought, “I’m so glad, that my mouth was closed, as that fly hit my mouth!” (Phew)

There are some things, that I’d really rather not consume, fly’s, being one of them. 🙂

I did give a “Thank You” to God, that my mouth was closed, at the critical point in question.

My thoughts, then went to, “Are there some things, that we take on, or consume, that aren’t, the best things, for us?
Are there some things, that we would be better off, if we would just close our mouths to them?”

I’m not going to give you a list of such things, as Our Lord God, is able to bring such things to our minds better than me. But then the real question becomes, …

When Our Lord God, brings the things that we should close our mouths to, to our minds, will we then follow His prompting, and close our mouths to the things, that just aren’t quite so good for us?

________________________________

I’d finished the above a few days ago, then, this morning on my cycle ride in to work, I had three instances, where I had to choose to not consume, that, which I had to go through.

The first instance.
Just as I was about to go through a park entrance, a person, who was walking past the entrance, was smoking in front of me, which I only realised as I started to take in the left over smoke. I have a complete dislike to smoking, and I react badly to it. So, rather than take the smoke in, I exhaled as deeply as I could, and held the exhale, to only breath in again, once I was in the park and the smoker was at of the way.
I had to go through the smoke, but I chose it not take it in.

The second instance, I had a bit more warning.
A person had just exhaled from a vape, and a big vape cloud was directly in front of me. As I saw it, I took a big intake of breath, in the fresh air, that I could then hold, as I went through the vape cloud.
Again, I had to go through it, but this time I was more prepared, and I just went through it, but not taking anything of it, in.

The third instance was very similar to the first.
I don’t recall the exact details of the third instance, and it was less of an thing, than the first, but I do remember thinking something along the lines of, …
“Really, three times now, I’ve had to go through something, whilst not taking it on board, three times!”

I’m hoping that this is just to confirm that it’s right to post this blog post here today, as haven’t me and my wife gone through enough already?

My ride to work, doesn’t normally have any instances, as the above, but this morning, Three!!! ???

I thank You Lord God, that You Are With us, as we go through life’s trials and troubles.
Please help us to look to You in All things.
Help us to Not consume or take on board, anything that is not from You.
Help us to pass through them, and to not be affected by them.
Help us to look to You, our True source of Help.
Our Lord God Almighty.
The One who is Able to lead and guide us through all of that, which we must go through.
Amen.

________________________________

James 4:7
7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

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To Share, or Not to Share?

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I’ve had a time, just recently, when I had a very real desire to share a thought about a something, that had been revealed to me, with a fellow brother. So, share it, I did.

I don’t think that I did anything wrong by sharing, but, part of me, is asking the question of,
Was it right to share that, just at that particular point in time?
Or was it just my want and desire to share that thought, at that precise moment?

There is a part me me, that is thinking, “You were a bit of a bulldozer there. It wasn’t quite so free flowing then, but more of a, you will get to understand my point.”

I do know, that I’m making it sound worse, than it was.
As I’ve done a little bit of pondering on it, there’s a question that’s been kind of coming to me. It’s, …

“If you had of waited for God’s timing, could a better opportunity to share, have presented itself, at a later time, when it would have been received, that much better?”

Which leads to the title of this post. To Share, or Not to Share?

I know, there is an enemy, who wants to tie us up in knots, over this very question, so that we then just keep asking, “shall I, or shall I not share”, and then the time, just passes us by, and we end up being, all the more confused.

I’ll try to be brief, with the next bit.

I’m thinking that there’s three main groups, that the answer to the question of, “to share or not to share”, can fall into.

1. Yes. share!
2. No, keep Quiet!
3. It’s OK to share, and, it’s OK to not share.

If the answer falls into the first group, then Yes, we should be sharing.
Ideally, we won’t let thoughts of, “But how do I …”, “Now is not the right time” and the like crowd in.
If the answer is, a “Yes” to share, then we need to try and be a bit bolder, and share.

If the answer falls into the second group of, “No, keep quiet!” Then we should keep quiet.
In this category, we can also have the scenario of, having a right word, but also having it at the wrong time. Are you aware, that a great damage can be done, with a correct word, given at, a wrong time. ???
Ultimately, if the answer to share, is a “No”, then we should not be sharing.

Which leaves us with the last group of, “It’s OK to share, and it’s OK to not share.”
How many times do words or thoughts, actually fall into this group, but we are looking for a definitive, “Yes” or “No”, as to whether we should share, or not?
If an opportunity to share is there, and you have something to share, then share.
But, then even in this group, if you are the only one, who’s ever sharing, then do you need to quieten down a bit, to make room, for someone else to share?
If you never speak up, then do you need to speak up a bit more, so that other people can also benefit, from what Our Lord God, is speaking to you?

If I’m not careful, then this could degrade into an endless ramble of nonsense.
Hopefully, you’re not thinking that it’s already there??? 🙂
(And all this was written, whilst trying to be brief???)

Ultimately, it’s always going to be that much better for us, if we can hear and follow, Our Heavenly Father’s thoughts and plans, over our own, and then be willing to follow them.

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Do You Want to See the Truth, or Just Prove that Your Truth is Correct?

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How open, are you, to what the actual truth is?

If you are wrong in you’re thinking, in some way, would you want to know about it?

If what you believe, is actually incorrect, then, would you want to come to a place of actually realising this?

If I am wrong, in what I think or believe, then I would like to be corrected. I do not like the idea of blindly following a lie!

The error, that I can fall into, is that I, Daniel, want to prove that I am correct in what I think and believe, and as such, I can become very passionate and forceful with how I conduct myself. In short, my delivery service of the truth, that I believe I have, can become a very bad service, as I try to prove that I am correct, in what I’m thinking.

Could I do better?
Hence the title of this post, “Do You Want to See the Truth, or Just Prove that Your Truth is Correct?”

Or if I’m going to make it personal to myself…
Do I Want to See the Truth, or Just Prove that My Truth is Correct?

My thinking is going to, if I can put the truth, into the position of being on trial, in place of what I, think is the truth, then could that subtle difference, mean that I, would no longer be on trial myself?
But the truth itself, would be the one who is.

If I could try to take on board this thinking, in a greater, and better way, then could this remove some of the need, that I feel, to defend myself, whilst I discuss what it is that I believe, with someone who has a different view to me?

Now, I’m not saying that we should change what we believe to be true, just to fit in with current thinking, as that is what the majority are seeing as the truth, in the here and now.
That would be the opposite of what I’m trying to say, and could end up leading to, the truth, being exchanged for a lie. I’m wanting to see, and know is, what is the actual truth.

But how do we seek out this truth?
Could we try, shining a light onto the perceived truth, to see how it holds up?

But what type of light, will we use?
A pitfall we can fall into, could be to shine a very narrow beam of light, onto the truth.
In this instance, we can end up with a bit of truth, without understanding the context, in which that truth is set.
The best way I’m thinking that I can explain this is, if we have a certain point of view, then we go and search out for evidence, that agrees with us, which we then present, as good evidence. But at the same time, we dismiss the evidence to the left and right, of our good evidence, just because we disagree with it.
It may sound crazy, when put, the way it’s just been presented, but how many of us, have been caught out, by this type of thinking… ???
(Me included)

Instead of narrow beam of light, would we be in a better position, if we were to use a floodlight, instead?
Or even better still, if we could use, daylight?

If we do seek out the light, but it then challenges our thinking, then how will we react to that?
Will we be able to accept the truth, for what it is, or will we want to hold fast onto, what we think is the truth?

John 3:19-21
19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.

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Should we Ever be Comparing Ourselves, with Others???

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I’m thinking that this week’s post, might be a bit of a lightbulb moment for me.

I was having a bit of a daydream, thought process, where I was having a conversation with a content creator, who I have just recently come across
(I’ve only seen their social content.)

During this conversation, my thoughts were going to a place, where I was wanting to compare the difficulties that we faced to the difficulties that they face. But, then it struck me, that, even the thought process of doing this, was just so offensive, to me!
It just felt, so wrong!
Which, in a roundabout way, has led to this week’s blog post title of,
“Should we Ever be Comparing Ourselves, with Others???”

l then did a quick web search, that led me to a page, that then just confirmed to me, that this is a very sensible question to ask.

I’m thinking that, part of my problem is, that it’s so ingrained in me, so that I do it, (comparing to others), without even thinking about it.

I’m aware of the need to focus on what you can do, over what you can’t do.
There has been many times, in the past, when I’ve spoken this very thought to my wife, when I’ve been trying to encourage her to be thankful, for what we do have.

Now that I’m thinking about it, I’ve even got a previous post of “God is my Judge“, where I look into the thoughts of, “I don’t need to worry about what you think of me, because, it’s what my God thinks of me, that is, the bit that matters.”

So, I’m starting to see, that I am aware of this thought, on one level, but that I’m probably missing so much more.

I’m now starting to think, that this is even covered, in the very beginning, in the ten commandments.

Exodus 20:17
17 “You shall not covet your neighbour’s house. You shall not covet your neighbour’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbour.”

Could this scripture also apply to, your neighbour’s abilities, looks and everything else?
Does this strike at the very heart of, “You shouldn’t compare yourself to others, but instead, listen to what your God is saying to you, about you?”

Now, I’m not saying that we should “never compare again”, as that would just be an impossible ask.
But, when it comes to our self worth, could we start to be aware of the dangers of, comparing, in the wrong way, and as such, try to do better, in the future.

I’m thinking that I may have a new subject matter to think about, look into, which may or may not, lead to further posts… ???

But, for right now, I’ll finish, as I started, with the thought of…

Should we Ever be Comparing Ourselves, with Others???

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Can You Be Thankful, when Someone Receives, What you are Waiting For?

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If you are waiting for an answer to prayer, and you then see someone else receive the answer that you are waiting for yourself, then how do you react to that?

Are you pleased for them?
Or, is there any resentment in seeing, what you are seeking, asking for, longing for, go to someone else?

Can you be left with the feeling of, “When will it be my turn?”
It can be a normal natural response, when there is pain in the pot, and the relief appears to go to another. But, just because it is a normal natural response, is it a response that we should give any time or energy to?
If a response causes us pain and upset, would we be better off, if we could instead try to… “Take captive, every thought” ?

2 Corinthians 10:3-5
3 For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

If the above has struck a chord with you, and you are still reading this, then thank you for staying with this.

If I’m going to be honest with you, I’m struggling to write the next bit.

I’ve heard, and do try to counsel myself, and my wife to follow a better line of thinking. For me, one of the obvious, go to scripture’s, is…

2 Corinthians 12:8-9
8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.

The part that I focus on, more than anything, is, “My grace is sufficient for you”.

There can be times when it is a real choice to think this way, instead of going down the, “When will it be our time?” or the, “It’s just not Fair!” route.
There can be times, when I need to ask, “Lord, can we Please have Your Peace and Joy, while we wait.”
Then, so many times, the words, “My grace is sufficient for you” comes back to me.

Our God is With us, in the trials. He is not distant, and leaving us to get on with it. No, He is with us, helping and supporting us, in ways seen, and unseen by us.

It can sometimes be a tough choice to say “Thank you” to Our Lord God, in the trials, and to remember and know that, His Grace, is sufficient for us. But it is still a true and valid thing to do, even if, sometimes, it hurts.

It maybe a choice, to rejoice, if we see someone else recieving a blessing, that we’d like to be recieving, but it’s still a good choice to make.

When it comes down to it, do we want to be filled with thoughts of, “It’s not fair”, or “When will it be my turn”, and the like. Or would we rather be filled with thoughts of Thankfulness and rejoicing?
What we fill up with, tends to be what flows out of us.

Ephesians 3:16-21
16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

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God. Really?

Last week, I wrote about a bit of a crazy idea, that I think I’ve been given, to just give money away, wrapped up in a message of, “God Loves You.” (Link here)

This week, I’m going to try to take down a transcript, of sorts, of the conversation/thoughts, that I’ve been having, with God, about this idea.
(I’m unable to give a full recording of what’s been going on, so I’ll just try to do what I can.)
(The bits that I think are more likely to be a direct input from God, I have made bold.)

Begin transcript…

God, … Really???
Do You, really want me to do this???
You know it’s crazy, don’t You??? … Of You do. You know all things. But, is this really from You? …

Do you think it could work?

Well, yes. If we tell someone that, “God Loves you” and that’s all we do, then they tend to not listen to us, and walk on by. But, if we told people, “God Loves you, and we have a gift of money to give to you, from God, just to say, God really does Love you.” Well, that might get a little bit more attention.
Or, I could even try the other delivery method of, just leave the gift, … Somewhere, wrapped up so that it can be seen that it is money (so that there’s less chance of it ending up in the bin), with a message that says, “Gift from God” on the outside, with a scripture or something on the inside. Then I leave it in Your hands. …
Then, it would be, over to You. For You to do with it, as You see fit.
But what if the wrong person picks it up?
What if it causes trouble or strife, in some way?
What if it all just goes wrong?

What was that bit you just said, of … “Then I leave it in Your hands.” ?

…

?????

But, do I want to part of something, that just goes wrong, in some way, that then just goes to, … ????
…
Yeah, I know the answer to this one already, “Then I leave it in Your hands.”
Yes, I know, I’m not God, You are.
Some things I’m responsible for, and I know, that there’s more things, that I’m not responsible for. I shouldn’t try to pick up things, that are not my responsibility.
But, I should, instead, just try to work with, that, which I’m meant to be doing.

Ok. But, is this idea really from You, or is it just my over active imagination?
I know that I can have a tendency to get carried away with things, if I’m not careful.

…

Have I told you to not do this?

…

Well, no. …
When I’ve spoken to fellow believers about it, they’ve told me, with a bit of a silly grin on their face, “If you’ve feel that you’ve been told to do this, then do it.”
Which has been, a little bit of, not what I’m looking for. As part of me, wants for people to tell me that, I’m crazy, and that I shouldn’t be so silly.
My wife is all for the idea, and is even asking, “When are we going to do it, then?”
Which is kind of Fun, and really annoying, all at the same time! … ???

…

I’m starting to think, that we could just start small. Instead of standing on the street, and shouting out, about it. We, me and my wife, could just leave a something, somewhere.
Instead of it being the full printed invite, with QR codes to various posts, it could just be a simple hand written note, stating something like, “Gift from God, just to say, God Loves you.” With a hand written verse inside. Such as …

John 3:16-17
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.

For the very first one, I could even, not write down my blog site name of Wannabe Christian Doorman, but just leave it as, being a gift from You. God.

…

OK, my wife is all for this. She seems to be even more eager to do this than me. We will go for the small start, and then just see where we go from there?

After we have left it, in it’s location to be found, we’ll then need to trust you, with what happens next to it.

Yes, I know about the parable of the seeds.
There are a few groups that fail, for various reasons.
But, there is also the group that finds good soil, that then produces a crop of, a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.

Both me, and my wife, pray that this first gift from You, will find good soil, that will help to lead someone, to You.
(Again, I have to admit, my wife has been better at this bit, than me.)

…

Does this idea, fall in line with the teaching, from the parable of the shrewd manager. (Luke 16:1-9) Use worldly wealth, to make progress in Your Heavenly Kingdom. ???

…

OK, it’s clear to me, that we will try to go forward with this, with little steps first.
But one little thing, I have to ask about this, …
Why do I feel, sooo daft, for even contemplating this???

…

I know, there’s a scripture verse, to answer this very thought.

2 Samuel 6:21-22
21 David retorted to Michal, “I was dancing before the Lord, who chose me above your father and all his family! He appointed me as the leader of Israel, the people of the Lord, so I celebrate before the Lord. 22 Yes, and I am willing to look even more foolish than this, even to be humiliated in my own eyes! But those servant girls you mentioned will indeed think I am distinguished!”

________________________

I’m hoping that I’ll get just past this feeling of silliness, over this. … ???

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Have I Lost the Plot?

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I have a crazy idea, that’s making me question my own sanity?

It’s a sure fire way, to make my bank balance go down.
The idea is, to give money away, wrapped up with a gospel message, that says, “God Loves You!”

You see, I believe that God is Real!
He is Genuine, The Real Deal, A True Living God!
And I would really like for all to know that this is true.

But, How, can I let people know that God is Real?
The people who aren’t interested in the things of God?

Would a gift of a sum of money make a difference?

Could a gift of a sum of money, wrapped up in a gospel message, that God Loves Them, possibly help someone to ask the question of, “Is God real?”

These gifts of Love, could be left in strategic places, for people to just find.

Or, if I could be a bit more bold, could I stand out on the street and shout out, “I have a gift of (a sum of money) to give to you, from God!
It’s a gift of Love, from The Lord God Almighty!
Please, just step right up, and accept a gift of Love, from God.”

Could this be a way to tell people, that God Loves them, in a way that might grab their attention?

As I said, at the start of this post, “Have I lost the plot?”
Or, is this something from, My Lord God Almighty! … ???
Could this possibly be a way to reach out to those who don’t know God, so that they might ask the valid question of, “Is God Real?“

The ending scene from Schindler’s List, is playing through my mind.
The part where he asks, did I do enough?
If I’d sold my watch, could I have saved another one?
How many could I have saved, if I sold my car?

When I come face to face, with my God, what will matter more?
How much money I had left in my Bank account?
Or how many people I reached, with a simple message of, “God Loves You!” ???

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Can you Receive a Blessing, from an Awkward Source?

Lets face it, we can all have those people in our lives, who just rub us up the wrong way, in some way or another. The one, who just has the ability to do or say something, at just the wrong time, in the wrong way.

But, because they irritate us, does that mean that they can’t be a blessing to us?
Or more to the point, can we recognise that, those who do irritate us, are also able to be a blessing, either for, or to us?

I can see, that I’ve most probably, been the irritating one at times, who may have been, overlooked or misunderstood, because of the irritation that I was bringing, at the time.
(To those who I have irritated in the past, please forgive and bear with me, I’m still a work in progress.)

But I can also recognise that I am still being blessed daily, because someone who kind of irritates me, told me about a different route that I could take (literally), which was better than the route, which I was taking.

The humour is not lost on me. I am being daily blessed, because of a route which was made known to me, by someone who just kind of irritates me. 🙂

The information that I was given, is Very Good, but the one who gave me this Good information, I still find, a bit of a challenge, at times.
How many daily blessings would I be missing, if I allowed my personal struggles, influence whether I should listen to the good information, that was presented to me. (Many daily blessings.)

Can we sometimes, miss a blessing, because of where this supposed blessing is coming from?

Now please, don’t get me wrong. The source of where a blessing comes from, does matter. If an enemy tries to trick us with something that looks good, but has a sting in the tail, then there is a need to be weary of such things, and use wisdom, with how we handle such things.

But what I am trying to ask is, can we see, that it is possible to be blessed by someone, or something, that we find to be a bit, or a lot, of a challenge, annoyance or irritation?

The problem that we can face, is that we can sometimes, only see the challenge, annoyance or irritation, that the source brings to us, and as such, then miss the blessing.

We can even see a possible example of this, in the bible, when Philip tells Nathanael about Jesus.

John 1:45-46
45 Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”

46 “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked.

“Come and see,” said Philip.

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Now, if Nathanael had allowed his thinking about Nazareth, dictate his actions, he could have missed out on meeting Jesus. He could have missed out on meeting with God.
Fortunately, Nathanael listened to Philip’s response of, “Come and see”.

Will we be able to act in a similar way, of being open to test and see, if what is in front of us, is of any value, even if it comes to us, from an unexpected, or irritating source?

I can remember someone saying to me once, “Your mind is like a parachute, it’s only any good to you, when it’s open.”

How open are we to recieving something of value, from a source, that we find challenging, in some way?

As I was thinking about these things, the bible verses in, 1 Corinthians 1:27-28 was kind of coming to me. It then it made me smile, as I read it, in it’s proper context.

Christ Crucified Is God’s Power and Wisdom

1 Corinthians 1:18-31

18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19 For it is written:

“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;
    the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.”

20 Where is the wise person? Where is the teacher of the law? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21 For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. 22 Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.

26 Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him. 30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”