'till The Storm Passes By

It’s a known fact that we Canadians talk about the weather more than anything else. So, I’m going to share the latest weather report.  Thunder, lightning and rain in London right now and the clouds are starting to blow in from the west to Woodstock. With all the rain we have had of late, it’s not a report we are looking forward to.

This is something else we talk about and that is, the weather people don’t seem to be too accurate. Remember all those Weather Alerts this past winter never materialized? Not coming was a wonderful thing. Mind you, it’s so nice to have a warning.

Most of us do not look forward to storms. The odd rain like last night is not a problem, but wind and rain, broken limbs and power down not so much. Many people my age can remember those storms that rocked our world when we were young. Kids, just ask us about the snow of ’77 or the hurricane of’54.  They came with power and might and nature did what it wanted to do and we had no say in the matter. Just like too much rain over this spring and the high water marks like we have not had before now.

Weather also helps us understand the storms of life. We to have big storms, small storms, and ones that come quick lasting only for a little while. There are even storms that knock our lights out. We all experience storms, we all are gripped by fear when we know it’s coming and we prayer real hard. A line from a long time ago doesn’t always help. ‘If God brings us to it, He will get us through it’.

But like most of the storms in our world, the ones in our lives end with a beautiful calm after it has passed. The clouds of darkness part and disappear only to show for each of us a Son that shines in the brilliance of God's heaven. What a reassurance for all of us that brings to our hearts the words we have sung so many times in the past:

Till the storm passes over, till the thunder sounds no more

Till the clouds roll forever from the sky

Hold me fast, let me stand in the hollow of Thy hand

Keep me safe till the storm passes by

Something to think about

Rob

Fuel For Life

So, tell me, what gets your motor running? In bygone times they would ask, what turns your crank, thank you Mr. Ford. But really, is there something in your life that spins your heart just a little bit faster? Some people get all excited about going somewhere. It’s the excitement of this past weekend when they head up to the cottage for the first time.

Others just love to get out in the garden and turn the soil and plant the vegetables or annuals. Kids get excited about things that excite them more so than adults who unfortunate seem to always say, “been there done that”. How sad. Still others get excited about sports, cars, new clothes, decorating the house or even their jobs. 

In life there will always be that fuel that gets our motor running at full speed. I remember a time when we could go out to the airport and buy aviation fuel with octane level of 100. And we did, to fuel up our muscle car. What an adrenaline rush. (Don’t tell anyone).

Back to the question. What is it that gets you going? Think about it. My wife on a number of occasions has told me, she can tell when I’m all fired up because my voice goes up. I know this to be true because I’m a bit like Paul who was energized by the power of God and all fired up to tell everyone he met about Jesus.So, think, is Jesus one of your fuels?

It can be the same for each one of us. Jesus Christ can be the fuel that energizes us. Paul wrote about it when he talked of the power of the resurrection. I get excited when I have the opportunity to talk about Jesus, to talk with Him personally and to see the power of God move the mountains I only stare at. 

My prayer is that all of us may know this exhilaration and power, and that it will be the number one entity in our life that stirs our hearts and brings an excitement as you smile at knowing Jesus.

Something to think about

Robin

Something New (to me)

Solomon may have said there is nothing new under the sun but, he’s no entirely right.  Have you ever discovered something under the sun that you didn’t know about? One of my favourite sayings is, “I didn’t know that”. How about you, have you ever said that lately? Or you were going to say it but were afraid you might sound dumb so you didn’t say anything?

There is always something new to your mind and eyes. You just have to keep your eyes & ears open. For instance, I heard a strange bird singing yesterday as I sat outside on our back deck. It sounded so beautiful. Never have I heard it before. Just last Friday, my neighbour had told me he saw a bird he had not seen in many many years. I told him I had never seen one ever, that is until yesterday.

I did everything I could to get a glimpse of the bird that was singing so beautifully.  Then, finally narrowing it down to the apple tree I watched and watched, until, there it was, full of song and colour. It was a Baltimore Oriole.  It was almost as if I was star stuck. I watched the bird for a few moments until it flew away. I have never seen one until now. The best part, the Oriole came back and I had the opportunity to see it again.

I believe God wants to show us new things each and every day. He shows it in our world. Just like sunrises and sunsets. I even had someone write me about the sunrise this past week. We both saw the amazing hand of God paint the sky before our eyes. He also shows Himself in the people who surround us in life. The best place He shows us new things is when He continually shows new things each day about Himself as we seek Him and look for Him in the person of His Son Jesus Christ.

What did you hear or see today from God? And by the way, five minutes later a Grosbeak came to eat at my bird feeder three meters from my chair. I’m still looking, are you?

Something to think about

Rob  

EXCITED!!!

Ever learn something, and were so excited about it, you want to tell everyone you see? Or how about getting something new and wanting to let everyone know. That the feeling we experience is what it’s like to get a new car, purchase your first home and even get engaged. Many things get us excited. For some, its small things, for others it big, real big.

Most people join us in our excitement. Just remember back when you were a child and received the exact gift you wanted on Christmas morning. There are millions of videos on youtube that show excited kids feeling what we did, and the whole family joined in the excitement.

Then there are those of us who just want to cherish the moment on our own. No fanfare, just an amazing inner feeling and we privately jumped up and down inside. You are either one of the other. And just as individualistic as we are, both are what moves us.

Then again, when we receive the most amazing gift of all, forgiveness and grace, what do we do? I remember back when I accepted Christ into my life, all I wanted to do was tell everyone.  My friends, I never want to forget that feeling and the desire to tell everyone that I love Jesus because He first loved me. You too learned about Jesus, when was the last time you told someone about Him?

Something to think about

Rob

Mistakes

We all make mistakes. Let's just say I know this from personal experience. If you were the cause of a car accident you know. Sometimes we are not proud of the mistakes we have made during our lifetime but they are there non-the-less. Many things we have done we even pray no one ever finds out about them. Not good in our sight, the view of others and even in God's sight they are not good. 

I want you to know that mistakes, even the bad ones, can be good things.

Most of us look at mistakes as a negative. A situation we either wish never happened or something we beat ourselves up over. Sometimes they haunt us our whole lives. Even when we try to forget the foolishness of what we did, they sometimes seem to come back to our memory and we live the guilt all over again.

Just so you know, this is what satan wants us to think about. He did it with Eve and tried it with Jesus. He called on both of them to do something that they should never do. With Eve, he caught her and with Jesus, not a chance.

The two things we need to carry in our hearts are these.  If we learned something from the mistake, we are half way there. Secondly, if we ask God in Christ for forgiveness and move forward to never repeat it again, we have arrived where Jesus tells us, "I remember it no more".

Something to think about.

Rob