21st century life would have you believe that your job is the most important thing in your life. It MUST come first … well let me break some news to you here; It isn’t!!

You are more important than your job; your health and well being. Your family is more important than your job, children who grow up so fast that before you know it they are leaving home. Your job is a means to an end, to provide the means to keep a roof over your heads and food in your bellies. Your well being and your health alongside your family is your responsibility.

Strangely enough, I bet your company would run perfectly well if you weren’t there, oh some colleagues might miss you for a while but the company would continue.

Your family would have a huge gap if you weren’t there, children missing a parent; husband or wife missing their partner; mum or dad missing a child.

God created the world in six days and then He took a day to rest … if God needed to rest one day in seven then I think that maybe we should as well. I’m not advocating the ‘do nothing’ for one day I’m simply stating that we need to take it easy and slow down once in a while. I’m sure that if we did this our health would improve, our relationships would improve and I am certain that our work would improve.

Try it and see.

In life we suffer many mishaps, many difficulties and many worries. Things happen which we are unable to explain, things that we see that are difficult to accept, events that we cannot justify.

We live in a world that has so much beauty yet we seem to see so much ugliness. On the one hand we see the vivid colours of nature; the beautiful sunsets; the fantastic scenery around us and the wonder and splendour of life just happening around us … the beauty. On the other hand we see wars, murder, abductions, greed and malice. We see hatred, violence and selfishness … the ugliness.

Sometimes I wonder how the ugliness came about when the Bible states that God looked at His creation and it was very good. If it was all good where did sin and the ugliness come from? The answer is that it came from within the human being. God gave man (and when I use the word man I am talking mankind not just males) a free will. He allowed man the choice as to whether to follow Him or do it our own way.

Have you ever stood a child in front of a plate of cakes or sweets and told them that they can any cake or sweet on the plate except one? Try it and I pretty much guarantee that they will want the one that you have said is off limits … well that is pretty much what God did and we choose the one that was off limits and as a result Sin entered the world. Sin brings with it all the ugliness that we have been talking about (I say we … of course I mean I).

How do we deal with it then? Well the truth is that we can’t deal with it. Sin is global and inherent in our nature, God dealt with it through Jesus. God became a human being, lived and died on earth and rose again from death to make way open for us to live in communion with God again. All we have to do is step from our path onto His and it is done. It really is that simple.

Oh … we’ll carry on sinning, but we can try and make a choice to do the right thing and not allow our fallen, sinful, ugly nature to lead us to the wrong thing. In making a choice we make a difference and once again the beauty of the creation around us becomes visible.

The choice is ours – what will you do?

I have just finished a most energetic and tiring week, well, I say I have finished it but the in reality the climax is today.

I have been heading up the running of a week long holiday club with 78 children coming along each day. We have been following the story of the rescue of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt by the most awesome power of God.

It has been interesting to learn:

a)      Sometimes God takes time to answer our prayers.

b)      Human arrogance often makes a bad situation much worse

c)       God is awesome in power

Let’s look quickly at each one of these and see how they apply to our lives.

a)      Sometimes God takes time to answer our prayers.

How often do we pray for an answer to a situation and then we give up praying because the answer does not appear immediately? Then we moan that God doesn’t answer prayer so what is the point in praying?

The Israelites were in forced labour making bricks with some very hard task masters. They cried out to God to save them and Moses was born … strangely as a baby. God’s answer was going to take time.

Moses should have been killed as a baby but God saved him and placed him in a place of safety.

It is another 40 years or so before we hear of Moses again, and then he kills an Egyptian and flees for his life, he lives in the desert for another 40 years and in all this time the Israelites are praying for their freedom and being treated as slaves. Would we have given up praying by this point?

b)      Human arrogance often makes a bad situation much worse

God starts demonstrating His power to Pharaoh by turning the water to blood. Pharaoh calls his magicians who turn what water is left into blood as well; God fills the land with frogs, Pharaoh’s magicians bring MORE frogs; the same with the flies.

You would have thought that if Pharaoh were trying to outdo God an impress his people that he would have commanded his magicians to get rid of the plagues from God not add to them.

Pharaoh’s arrogance began to cost the Egyptians and their economy very dear. They suffered incredible illness and then lost cattle & livestock, crops and finally their firstborn children. If only Pharaoh had responded at plague one!! One by one God tackled the gods of the Egyptians and defeated them until finally the Egyptians had nothing left and demanded that the Israelites leave. Hmmmmm – sometimes in our arrogance we hold out against God but in my experience He generally wins, No!! He always wins!!

c)        God is awesome in power

Having been cast out from Egypt the Israelites find themselves up against the Red Sea with the Egyptians racing up behind them and they, in faith … moan at Moses. Moses talks to God and this is the answer that is given:

“WATCH, TODAY YOU WILL SEE THE SALVATION OF GOD”

Those words are still yelled out to those crying out to Him – Today … you can see the salvation of God.

The Red Sea was parted and … well … you know the story.

God demonstrated His awesome power in the presence of a doubting people, even though they were terrified and were moaning at Moses and God, God still rescued them and the story is still told to us and by us today.

So, to finish I want to remind us all that God is still in the business of saving people today. By the blood of Jesus we are rescued from the plague of sin, the sea of death is parted and we receive new life in the Promised Land … in the presence of God.

WOW!! A tiring but totally fulfilling week; sowing seed and hearing again the message of salvation.

BACK TO WORK TOMORROW FOR A REST … lol

I wonder sometimes why we have so many things to do in life. The older I get the more jobs seem to need doing … and for me, I afraid to admit, it is so easy to procrastinate. "Oh never mind, there’s plenty of time … I can do that tomorrow!" Famous last words.

Well with all that in mind I want to remind you (and myself) that in His work of creating the universe (no I’m not going to argue with you about that … my belief is that He did and therefore I write from that point of view!!) God worked on His creation for six days and then He rested.

God rested on day 7

God worked at creating the beautiful surroundings in which we live. He spoke light; He spoke oceans, sky, clouds. He spoke flowers, trees and shrubs; he spoke birds, fish and animals … large and small. God did all this just by speaking. The power of His word!

I love to imagine, sometimes what a wonderful place the world … and the universe … must have been in those first few moments

Then the Bible goes on to say that God created man … "Let us MAKE man" (Gen 1:26). Now for all those of you who are now going to correct me, in the Bible Man refers to Human beings … male & female.

So God sets to work creating humans to inhabit tend and nurture His creation.

God didn’t NEED to rest – but it is my belief that He was instigating the principle of having one day in seven to allow our bodies to rest and recuperate. So why do we fill every 24 hour period with stuff … which if we are really honest is not going to make much difference. We put pressure upon ourselves to achieve, to keep up with – nay! If possible overtake those around us. To get noticed by our boss for our achievements and to receive a reward which will, only temporarily, satisfy us and give us purpose.

Slow down and take it easy, try just one day in seven to have a slow day. Allow your body to rest and rejuvenate ready for the next six day onslaught – because it IS coming!　

We hear of the many job cuts, the fact that our money is worth less today than it was a couple of years ago and therefore we are all having to work twice as hard just to stand still. But, what is important? It’s ok to have the nice things we have but when it comes at the cost of our heath was it worth it. Focus on the things that are important … for me it is the Kingdom stuff. Living for God, sharing His good news and demonstrating what He has done for me.

So when I next say "there’s not enough time" … I need to remember that there is plenty of time I just need to refocus.

Have a good week/day/whatever and remember that putting your feet up for a while is NOT a sin!!