Have Faith - October Edition

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Day 6 & 7 You shall be judged as you judge... Judgement... Wow, I feel that I'm walking in a minefield with this one. One of the hardest topics to speak about is Judgement. Mainly because we are all guilty of this at some point. It is something that we will do for many reasons. To display our feelings and emotions, to let someone know how wrong they are, sometimes to let others know what someone has done or what they are like. Social media is a hotbed for this. Everyday I see it, facebook especially. I remember how judging and being judged was such a big problem while we were serving in Northern Ireland. Every time we left the camp we were suspicious of everybody, making us look at the public with extreme caution wondering if they were terrorists. This lead to stereotyping innocent people. On the other side, we were seen as the enemy by some, aggressive soldiers come to dominate their country. Of course this was not the case but this practice of judging and being judged was Ask... From the day we are born we have this amazing ability to learn. Our minds, like computers, can process and store all kinds of information that can be made available at any time. The great thing here is we don't have to push any buttons to access it. But what happens when we try to search our database and cannot find the information we are after? Our back up system kicks in which will access data from external sources. In simple terms, when we don't know the answer, we ask. We can ask for advice, we can ask for directions, we can ask for help, in fact there is a whole universe of things we can ask for. But how many times have you felt that you have missed the boat just because you haven't asked a question because you were too embarrassed, too shy, didn't want to look silly in front of others or maybe just couldn't be bothered? Personally, I have done this more times than I am comfortable with. Peer pressure in the army was Matthew 7 & John 8 causing so many problems and bad feelings. Judging others is such a dangerous practice mainly because the standards we judge people with, we rarely meet ourselves. Yet again that saying from Jesus comes to mind. "Let him without sin cast the first stone". The Bible is very clear on this subject. You only have to read Matthew 7 in the New Testament to see what I mean. It states, Judge and you shall be judged. There is also a good passage about wiping the dust from your brothers eye. That's really worth reading. I do realise that this is part of our makeup and sometimes we do this to protect ourselves from harm. We are all very guilty of it, I am not saying everybody should stop it immediately, this would be very hypocritical and unrealistic but there is no harm in allowing yourself to stop and think and ask yourself that old question again. "Am I in a position to throw the first stone?" I certainly am not. Matthew 7: 7-12 my comical downfall on a number of occasions but due to the fear of me looking a right berk on this reflection, I shall keep them to myself. The wonderful thing about talking to God and asking him for help is you'll never look silly. You can ask him about anything you like. You can speak to him about your darkest and deepest thoughts and you will never have to worry about what he thinks. One of the amazing things I have found that when I do talk to him everything is silent. I like to think that it's because he is listening to everything we say and he doesn't want to miss anything. God's love for us means that no matter what time of day or night, no matter what the circumstances are, we can ask him for his help, love, grace and forgiveness and he will be there to listen. It's very comforting to think that he is there at the end of our very own private line using our hearts as his switchboard. Just ask. | 8 Have Faith
Day 8 Call unto me and I will answer thee... Answer the Call... All you need to do is spend five minutes in your local village, town or city to really see how important our mobile phones have become in our lives. No matter where we are or what we are doing, if our phone rings we get an overwhelming urge to answer it. Thanks to technology, these days we normally see who is calling before we answer but still, we have the urge to know what they want. We have to answer. The thought occurs how our military hierarchy would react if we didn't answer our radio messages when they called us. The results would range from downright annoying to catastrophically dangerous. It really brings it home just how important it is to answer your calls. Have you ever had this feeling in your heart that there is something you have to do or something you are meant to say? Have you ever felt that someone needs your help? The chances are when you get those feelings you are receiving a call through your spiritual phone. God is on the other end of the phone 24/7 sending us messages when he wants to use us to carry out his work. When he sees suffering and knows you have the tools to help, he will call you. He may even use others to contact you. Ephesians 1: 3 - 14 Something to bear in mind the next time you are being asked for help. Answering his calls may mean discomfort, pain, heartache or persecution but his plans will mean that suffering will be temporary and there are greater things to come. I remember someone once telling me over and over "God knows what he is doing". As hard as it was to believe back then, she was right. Not so long ago, for me, everything dropped into place and made sense. The ups and downs, rights and wrongs, pain and suffering, everything became visible. I do know there is still a long way to go and an awful lot of work to do, my own personal battles are far from over but I do know he called. He has given me my task and showed me what I need to do. Sometimes I am not sure that I am strong enough or good enough to complete the task but hopefully, if I trust in him he will give me strength and guidance. I can only try and pray. So if you ever have the heartfelt urge to do something or ever wonder why events happen in a certain way, ask yourself if God is trying to call you. Is he trying to tell you something? The chances are, he is. Answer The Call!! Have Faith 9 |
Page 2 and 3: Foreword Welcome to Have Faith. A b
Page 4 and 5: Day 2 Hope... Where would we be if
Page 6 and 7: Day 4 Forgive and you shall be forg
Page 10 and 11: Day 9 Forgive one another, as God i
Page 12 and 13: Day 11 And on this stone I shall bu
Page 14 and 15: Day 13 & 14 Sing your song... Come,
Page 16 and 17: Day 17 The longest journey starts w
Page 18 and 19: Day 19 Trust in his answers and his
Page 20 and 21: Day 21 No weapon formed against you
Page 22 and 23: Day 24 & 25 Even the puddles can su
Page 24 and 25: Day 27 Understand the messages you
Page 26 and 27: Day 29 & 30 Press on towards the go
Page 28: Have Faith One of the most importan

Have Faith - October Edition

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