Windows On The Soul

In times of great despair, people will often start to question the reason for their existence. But why do we wait until we are at rock bottom to ask the most important question that every person must face up to? We have not been created to live a long, healthy, prosperous life in the pursuit of happiness, or just to be loving and kind to our fellow mankind, or even to live a holy righteous life. These may be desirable or even necessary, but they are not the essence of why we exist. The principal reason for our existence is that our lives should bring glory, honour and blessing to God ( Rev.5:13 ) . Our being or existence is different to what we do. Just as a beautiful work of art brings honour to its artist, so our existence should bring glory to our creator. But the dirt and grime of sin have tarnished, and restoration is required. It is in a state of righteousness through Jesus, restored per our creator’s original intent, that we are called to live. Then we will be able to refle...

My computer Bible Search tells me that the above phrase appears 32 times through-out the New Testament, from Jesus’ verbal command ( John.13:34,35 ), through the epistles of Paul, Peter and John. Interestingly, it is the only new commandment that Jesus gave to His follows, because it distilled the essence of all the ‘old’ commandments that had gone before.  But Jesus then went on to say three more very important things about this commandment. He pointed to Himself (“ As I have loved you... ”) as an example, an inspiration, and in a sense as our ‘debt’ to love. He reinforced the imperativeness of the command with “ ...so you must love... ”. The powerful impact of this type of love will be such that it will be the mark of His disciples within the world. The Apostles then go on to teach what this type of love involves.  It will be familial and honouring ( Rom.12:10 ), serving ( Gal.5:13 ), humble, gentle, patient and fore-bearing ( Eph.4:2 ), considerate and encouraging ...

One of the marks of the Bible that gives it its ring of truth, is its portrayal of God's people in real life - the good, the bad and the ugly. As Nehemiah describes the reconstruction of the walls of Jerusalem, the human detail shows through. In 3:5, the leaders of the town of Tekoa refused to do any manual labour, but in 3:12 we find that the daughters of Shallum get a special mention for working with the men. Then in 3:27, the men of Tekoa rebuild a second section (did the men, ashamed of their leaders offer to work double, or was it a punishment?). The descriptions of various jobs (stone workers, wood workers, lock-smiths, metal workers, etc) also reminds us of Corinthians 12 , that in the Church there is a myriad of skills and gifts that we bring in our service for The Lord. ----xxxXxxx---- Jas.4:17 "He who knows what is right and does not do it, is sinning" Pr.31:30 "Charm is deceptive, beauty disappears, but a woman who honours God should be praised...

It was not enough that you made me like yourself, But you chose me, adopted me, joint heir with your only begotten Son. As I turn to you in prayer, your love engulfs me, pure, heavenly, undeserved love. "Daddy" I cry. "My child" you reply. I pour out my day to you, the highs, the lows, the bumps, the bruises, My needs and dreams, hopes and aspirations, we share, together. Father, I honour you, as only you deserve - Father knows best, it may seem trite, But I submit to your holy will, that it might, Be well with me and my children for ever. ---===X===--- Lk.11:1 "Lord, teach us how to pray!" Mt.6:8 "Your Father already knows your need before you ask" Rom.8:15 "...received the spirit of adoption whereby we cry Abba, Daddy" Mt.7:9 "...if his son asks for bread, will he give him a stone?" Eph.1:5 "...unto us the adoption of children by Jesus Christ." Deu.5:29 "...keep my ...