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Hi all!!

“Blessed be the Lord,
Who daily loads us with benefits,
The God of our salvation!”
(Psalm 68:19)

I’ve just finished putting a collection of Easter Cards together. Now the beauty of these cards is that you can keep on giving them.

WHY?

Because they can be yours in digital PDF format that, after you download, you can print and send over and over again… and keep on blessing over and over again… and in the process you get blessed over and over again. Also, you can be sharing the TRUE MESSAGE of Easter with those who don’t know Christ.

But hey, it doesn’t stop there. The proceeds raised from this card making venture goes toward mission work in Uganda and Kenya. So even by just ordering the cards you are blessing someone on the other side of the world.

So I invite you to join in this PERPETUAL BLESSING by VIEWING AND ORDERING the cards.

God bless you!! Hope you like this.

And, btw, if you like this collection, you can share this with your friends on Facebook, Twitter, email, etc. Just click on the SHARE BUTTONS at the bottom of this post. That would be super awesome.

“Bless the LORD, O my soul;
And all that is within me, bless His holy name!
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
And forget not all His benefits:
Who forgives all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases,
Who redeems your life from destruction,
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,
Who satisfies your mouth with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.”
(Psalm 103:1-5)

When should we opt in and opt out?

Sometimes we feel we must abandon our own efforts and let God do it. As Jesus said: “Apart from Me you can do nothing.” But that can be a cop-out. We think because we can’t do it, we sit back and wait for God to do it.

And then we read in Philippians, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” God tells us to take what is in our hand and go and DO! But then we can fall in the trap of thinking we can take on the world. We go out with enthusiasm and determination, only to fall flat on our face. But God says, “It is not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit… this mountain shall be removed.”

So should we STAY and WAIT on God, or should we GO??

I am reminded of the Israelites in the wilderness. The Lord led them by the pillar of cloud and fire. When the cloud stayed, they stayed… when the cloud moved, they moved. Is that not what it means to walk in the Spirit?

In Galatians 5 we have that phrase twice… walk in the spirit…

“Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” (16)
“If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” (25)

But it is interesting to note that there are two different Greek words used for the word “walk”. The first being “peripateo”, which means the whole round of activities of our life, and the second is “stiocheo”, meaning IN A ROW or IN LINE. In other words walking in an orderly fashion. Or as the NIV says, to “keep in step with the Spirit.”… like a marching soldier, or you make like to picture a dancer. And keeping in step all has to do with timing.

So whether we STAY or we GO, it is all a matter of God’s timing. Let us keep in step with Him, and then we will succeed.

The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD,
And He delights in his way.
Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down;
For the LORD upholds him with His hand.
(Psalm 37:23-24)

NOTE: This is a pic of my cat, Sir Bassy, on top of the garden gate, okay? (This is to prove my point with this story.)

Well, to I was near the garden gate. On the other side was Sir Bassy. He had spotted me and came up and meowed… “Seeing you are there, you can open the gate for me.” But I said, “You have legs to jump and claws to climb… you can get over the gate yourself.”

I think he plays on my sympathy from some months ago, when he was bashed up in a fight and his leg had become infected. He couldn’t put much pressure on it and seemed to take ages to heal. He could jump up on things but couldn’t jump down, so he would sit there and cry for someone to get him down. So he has formed this habit.

However, I am telling this story so I can share something about life. I see there are many people like my cat. They get stuck in a cycle of poverty or “helplessness”. They believe they need someone to rescue them. They expect that kind-hearted people will “open the gate” for them.

Even as parents, our own kids can trick us. We hear a cry… “Mummy, help me, I am stuck.”… (age does not matter…they can be 2 or 22.) I think we can all relate, and we did the same with our parents.

So whether it is our own kids (or pets), or someone who comes to us destitute, sometimes our desire to help can be more of a hindrance than a help…. hmmmm…..

(says me as the cat comes and jumps on the computer and tries to wipe out what I’ve just typed… hahaha!! Now time for a cuppa….)

Now, I’ve been thinking some more. I have been thinking to myself about this little story, and I can see myself doing the same things with God. I cry out to God, “Please open the gate!!”

But God says. “You climb over!!” But I say, “It is too hard!!” and God says, “I gave you strong legs and you can do it!!”… and the argument goes on… “No I can’t!!” …. “Oh, YES YOU CAN!!!”

Hmmmmm….. I think I remember Moses and Gideon having similar arguments with God….

And this reminds me of a dream I had last week…. but I will share it in another post…

Mercy Wins!!, originally uploaded by Jeanette’s Ozpix.

“Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.”
(Matthew 5:7)

“Mercy triumphs over judgment.” (James 2:13)

When I was thinking about a flower for love, I thought of the rose, of course. (Though I am not a rose person.) But still I had this photo of frangipanis that I needed a word for. Then I realized that LOVE was perfect.

The frangipani is connected with love and relationships in many cultures. And you would think I should have two flowers, but a true lasting relationship involves THREE.

Today is our wedding anniversary, and the text the Lord gave us 27 years ago was Ecc. 4:12… “A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.” Of course, Christ is the third strand.

Love is patient and kind.
Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude.
It does not demand its own way.
It is not irritable, and
it keeps no record of being wronged.
It does not rejoice about injustice
but rejoices whenever the truth wins out.
Love never gives up,
never loses faith,
is always hopeful,
and endures through every circumstance.
Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages
and special knowledge will become useless.
But love will last forever!

Three things will last forever—
faith, hope, and love—
and the greatest of these is love.
(1 Corinthians 13:4-8,13, NLT)

LET US EXALT HIS NAME TOGETHER!!

The Lord will often interrupt our mundaness with glimpses of His glory.

On the way down to catch some post Christmas sales at Rivers this arvo, I passed by some majestic magnolia trees, loaded with huge blossoms….

It is like they want to magnify and boast about God’s glory!!!  And we say with the Psalmist:

I will praise the Lord at all times.
I will constantly speak his praises.
I will boast only in the Lord;
let all who are helpless take heart.
Come, let us tell of the Lord’s greatness;
let us exalt his name together.

I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me.
He freed me from all my fears.
Those who look to him for help will be radiant with joy;
no shadow of shame will darken their faces.
In my desperation I prayed, and the Lord listened;
he saved me from all my troubles.
For the angel of the Lord is a guard;
he surrounds and defends all who fear him.

Taste and see that the Lord is good.
Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!
Fear the Lord, you his godly people,
for those who fear him will have all they need.
Even strong young lions sometimes go hungry,
but those who trust in the Lord will lack no good thing.

(Psalm 34:1-10, NLT)

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YOURS TO DOWNLOAD AND PRINT AND SHARE (over and over)…

~~ as a Greeting Card (double-fold),
~~ as Small Hand-out cards (16 to page).

• Just fill in your name, email address and country (needed for paper size),
• then tick your selection (prices are included), and SUBMIT.
• After we receive your order, we will email you the download link with payment details.
  
• The proceeds support MISSIONS IN UGANDA AND KENYA.

[contact-form]

For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of His government and peace
There will beno end,
Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,
To order it and establish it with judgment and justice
From that time forward, even forever.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.
(Isaiah 9:6-7, NKJ)

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:
“ Glory to God in the highest,
And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”
(Luke 2:13-14, NKJ)

“Peace I leave with you; My [own] peace I now give and bequeath to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. [Stop allowing yourselves to be agitated and disturbed; and do not permit yourselves to be fearful and intimidated and cowardly and unsettled.]” (John 14:27, Amp.)

Yes, the Lord Jesus truly is OUR PEACE!!  He has come to bring peace on earth, and that peace takes many forms:

• Peace with God… which results in:
• Peace with Ourselves;
• Peace with Others;
• Peace among Nations;
• Peace with our Enemies.

The word for peace in the Old Testament is SHALOM.  This is the Hebrew greeting, just like we say, “Hello!”, “Hi” or in Oz, “G’day!”  But it is much more than that.

When someone greets you with “Shalom”, he is actually pronouncing a blessing on you, a blessing of completeness, of wholeness, of peace, of health, of welfare, of safety, of soundness, of tranquility, of prosperity, of perfectness, of fullness, of rest, of harmony, of the absence of agitation or discord.

And this very peace, this SHALOM, is what Jesus has given and bequeathed to us.

Add to this the Greek word which is EIRENE.  It is a state of rest, quietness, and calmness; an absence of strife; tranquility.  In other words it is a perfect well-being.  This peace can only start with the Prince of Peace for those who call upon Him for personal salvation.

When the heart is at peace with God, then all other things fall into place.  Then we become complete and whole, and in harmony with ourselves and the rest of the world.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For more reading, check out these previous blog posts based on this text in Isalah about peace of mind:

“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.” (Isa 26:3, ESV)

1. The Creative Imagination;
2. Perfect Peace;
3. Balancing Act.

LATEST POSTS IN SPECIAL TREASURE:

• Peace in Bad Situations

Joy to the world the Lord has come, Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him room, and heaven and nature sing….

JOY!!! May it be yours this Christmas, because the birth of the Lord Jesus was the best news that ever happened. Just as the Angel said to the stunned shepherds:

“Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:10-11)

So let us rejoice… and remember this little song that we used to sing to the tune of Jingle Bells:

J-O-Y!…  J-O-Y!
this must surely mean,
JESUS first and
YOURSELF last and
OTHERS in between…..

And yes, you will then have JOY unspeakable.

“The JOY OF THE LORD is your STRENGTH!” (Neh 8:10)

Here are some more JOYOUS instances!!….

• The Wise Men: “When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.” (Mat 2:10)
• The man who found hidden treasure – “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.” (Mat 13:44)
• The women who found out that Jesus had risen – “So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to bring His disciples word.” (Mat. 28:8)
• The announcement of the birth of John the Baptist – “And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.” (Luke 1:14)
• The unborn John leaped in his mother’s womb when pregnant Mary arrived – “For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.”
• The joy in heaven over a sinner who repents – “I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.” (Luke 15:7)

And look what Jesus said about the joy that would be ours after He died and rose again:

“Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy. A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.
“And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you.  Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.”

JOY is God’s very nature.  He loves to rejoice over His kids…

“The LORD your God in your midst, The Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.” (Zec 3:17)

And JOY is what Jesus has designed for us.

“You will show me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”
(Pslam 16:11)

“Weeping may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning.” (Psalm 30:5)

“Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy.” (Psalm 126:5)

“You have turned for me my mourning into dancing;
You have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness,
To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent.
O LORD my God, I will give thanks to You forever.”
(Psalm 30:11-12)

He even enables us to rejoice all the time even when things are bad…

“Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!” (Phil 4:4)

“Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.  For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.” (James 1:2-3, NLT)

““Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.  Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Mat 5:11-12)

So finally:

“Now all glory to God, who is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with great joy into his glorious presence without a single fault.  All glory to him who alone is God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord. All glory, majesty, power, and authority are his before all time, and in the present, and beyond all time! Amen.” (Jude 24-25, NLT)

SCRIPTURE: (Luke 4:18-19, NKJ)

“The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me,
Because He has anointed Me
To preach the gospel to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives
And recovery of sight to the blind,
To set at liberty those who are oppressed;
To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.”

TEXT: (v.18)
“The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me,
Because He has anointed Me
To preach the gospel to the poor.”

As I read this passage that phrase jumped out at me. Didn’t Jesus come to preach the good news to everyone? Why does the prophet Isaiah only mention the poor? Don’t we all need good news?

And then another question. Who are these poor that Jesus preached to?

Well, I learned that there are two types of poverty mentioned in the New Testament. In the Greek they are:

• Penes – those poor who can help themselves through their own labour; and
• Ptochos – those in abject poverty, who have no other means of support than to beg – the ones who need someone else to lift them.

And it is interesting that it was to this second group that this prophecy was addressed. These are the poor that we see images of in third world countries. These are those who do not seem to have any hope. This is to whom Jesus came to preach good news. Oh, how He loves poor people, and how He wants to deliver them! Our natural reaction would be to turn a blind eye as those images we see are far too disturbing. But let us stop and look. See them as Jesus did.

So what is it that causes one to be in this sorry state? If we look at the following verses and we notice four different groups of people.  They are the abused, the prisoners, the blind, and the oppressed.

And what did Jesus come to do for these people? Did He come with government hand-outs and relief aid? Did He come with oodles of money to pay their debts? No!! Those are only band-aid solutions.

INSTEAD, Jesus came with ANSWERS!! He came to heal broken hearts, to proclaim liberty from bondage, to bring recovery of sight, and to set the oppressed free.

Here is how He did it:

“Though He was rich, He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.”  (2 Cor. 8:9, NKJ)

Yes!! He became destitute, as poor as a beggar, so that we might become rich. This is the GOOD NEWS!! Jesus went to the cross, stripped of all so that He would be OUR ALL.

So that is why He came with good news for the poor beggars. They were desperate. They are the ones who recognized their need and most willing to receive.

For those of us who have some wealth or substance, and even for the battlers, we can depend on our own resources. We do not have the same desperate need of a Saviour. Well, we don’t see it. But all that outward wealth can camouflage our real need, and that is, without Christ we are in dire need spiritually. That is why Jesus said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Each one of us needs to come to the point of recognizing that spiritually we are like a poor beggar. We need to cast aside our independence and call on Him for mercy and favour.

So now can we understand why the gospel is flourishing in poor countries, while in the west we are in spiritual famine? Really, who are the rich and who are the poor?

“Listen, my beloved brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?” (James 2:5, NKJ)

“The blessing of the Lord make one rich, and He adds no sorrow with it.” (Proverbs 10:22, NKJ)

So let us come to His feet and sing with the hymn writer:

Jesus see me at Your feet,
Nothing but the blood can save me;
You alone my need shall meet,
Nothing but the blood can save me.

No, no, nothing do I bring,
But by faith I’m clinging
To the cross, O, Lamb of God,
Nothing but the blood can save me.

The photos are from a crusade in Uganda that Evangelist Evard was involved in just before Christmas.  He preached about Jesus who came as the Light of the World, and that people no longer need to grope in the darkness of despair.  Many received Christ!  We thank God!!

You can visit  his site, “God’s Mercy to the World“.  You will see more photos there, and can contribute to the work of this ministry by clicking on the PAYPAL button in the right-hand column.  You will be helping him to preach the GOOD NEWS to the poor.

These are pictures I took a two years ago on a visit to Timbertown in Wauchope on NSW Mid North Coast, Australia. I dragged them out of my archives, because I felt they were so appropriate for us with this Moringa project.

Timbertown is an historical village, reenacting life of the early pioneers in Australia. I was so impressed by this display, and learned a lot about bullock teams and yokes and burdens. So many spiritual lessons one could apply to it!!

In this blog post, I will share some facts that I discovered about yokes. In the next post I want to share about the Beast of Burden and the Teamwork.

So here are the results of my study:
THE YOKE:

1. YOKE – A type of harness that connected a pair of animals to a plow or similar tool.

2. Yokes were usually made of a wooden beam shaped to fit over the necks of the two animals and held in place by wooden or leather fasteners.

3. A bow yoke is a shaped wooden crosspiece bound to the necks of a pair of oxen, or occasionally horses. It is held on the animals’ necks by an oxbow, usually U-shaped, that also transmits force from the animals’ shoulders, hence the name bow yoke. A swivel beneath the centre of the yoke, between the animals, attaches the pole of the vehicle (when the animals steer the vehicle) or chains that are used to drag the load.

4. The yoke was used to harness two bullocks to each other. The wooden beam rested across their shoulders, and was held in place by the ox-bows (the adjustable metal ‘collar’ piece) looping under their necks. The pair of bullocks was then connected to the rest of the team by attaching a strong chain to the large metal ring located in the middle of the wooden beam.

5. The yoke was also used as a symbol of the burden or oppression of heavy responsibility, duty, sin, or punishment (1 Kin. 12:4–14; Jer. 27:8–12; Acts 15:10).

6. In New Testament times the phrase ‘take the yoke of’ was used by the Jewish rabbis to mean, ‘become the pupil of’ a certain teacher. Jesus gave a gentle invitation to His disciples: ‘Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light’ (Matt. 11:29–30).

7. A yoke of oxen was a pair (1 Sam. 11:7; Luke 14:19). Using a pair to pull a plow required a yoke to link them together so they could work efficiently.

8. YOKEFELLOW — a fellow laborer of the apostle Paul (Phil. 4:3, NIV, KJV; companion, NKJV; coworkers, NRSV). The word implies one who is yoked in harness with another—the two working as a team.

NEXT: MEET THE TEAM! >>>>