The Gift of Christmas

Well Christmas is nearly upon us. Decorations have been done for ages, presents almost done. Food shopping still to get?  So much hustle and bustle around the place as people are beginning to panic now as they worry if they have got everything.

It is a magical time of year though. Christmas carols being sung, Christmas plays and pantos. Children getting so excited , in fact the adults do too, I know I do. However, we need to take time to stop and remember the ‘reason for the season’, as they say.

Have you remembered? Have you remembered what Christmas is all about?  What we are really celebrating?

Lets not forget the greatest gift of all.

God who made everything, the universe,  all that is in it,  you and me, He loves us all so  much more than you can ever imagine.

In fact He loves us so much He came into the world as a baby and ultimately to save us and this is what we celebrate at Christmas.

You see there was a time when we walked the earth in peace with God. God gave us authority over the earth to look after it  and have communion with God there was peace and all was well but we were tempted by satan and as Adam and Eve obeyed satan they gave their authority to him. So he became the ‘god of this world’ Sin then entered the world. There is now death, sickness, wars, famines, earthquakes, hatred, etc. you name it. But by Jesus coming into the world, dying for our sins and being raised to life and seated at the right hand of the Father, He has given us (all those that  believe in Him, that are born again into Gods kingdom) authority and power in Jesus name.  So He has saved us from sin, death and the kingdom of darkness. That’s worth celebrating.

So, thankfully God didn’t leave us in this mess we were in , unable to help ourselves  Jesus came as the greatest gift ever , the gift of Himself. He showed us how to live by example. How to have eternal life with Him instead of without. That’s what we celebrate this Christmas . Our Saviour was born.

Do you know that there were over 300 prophesies about Jesus , including his place of birth, life and method of His death, even the amount of money he would be betrayed for.

I don’t know about you but He is everything to me. He has shown me and countless others His love, Grace and Mercy. He has turned my world around , He has forgiven me , restored me , always been there for me, and  I have a relationship with Him and to me  Jesus  is the GREATEST gift of all.

Have  a wonderful Christmas.

My First Blog - God is in the storms of life

Well here goes my first ever blog post !!  I believe God has put this on my heart to do so here goes. I have thought of the subject of trials as it happens to us all and felt led to share this.

I dont know about you but life certainly has its ups and downs. We have all had our fair share i am sure.   Being a Christian does not make you immune to illness, hardship, grief and pain but it does mean that through all those things we have a loving Heavenly Father who will see us through and lift us up in those times. Holding us tightly as we make each step to restoration. As I share with you in my Blogs from time to time what God is revealing to me to say,  my prayer is that this will help us on our journey, that we will grow ever closer to God and realise again that He is the one that sustains us, helps us, guides us and loves us more than we can ever imagine.

When the dark times come and you feel alone, desperate, afraid or not sure where to turn, thankfully God is there. We need to talk to Him in prayer,  tell Him how we feel, be honest with Him. Ask for His help. You see when trials /problems/ill health/debt etc come we tend to spend more time thinking of them (which is natural I know i have been there) but that makes them become even bigger,  rather than taking  them to God first.  By taking them to God we need to leave them with Him and trust Him to make a way because He will. He will bring that hope and healing that we so desperately need. We need to turn our eyes to Him, praising Him, worshipping Him, reading His word as we usually do but more so in times of trouble.  All these things  take our eyes off us and the situations  and onto Him.

How do i know this. Well I have been through quite a few tough times and God has never let me down. I went through a tough time recently and I found myself looking at the situ, not seeing a way out and feeling really low.  I prayed to God to help and He did. He brought friends to my side who prayed, sent texts every day and spent time with me. How i thank God for them.

I told the Lord that I trusted Him, I didn’t understand what was going on but i trusted Him. I praised Him and worshiped Him from my heart. In fact I sang worship songs all day long, read His Word and spent more time than usual with Him.

Things haven’t changed yet but I have. The problems are still there but He has them.  God will supply all our needs, He has promised us that so lets hold onto Him.  Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding and in ALL your ways acknowledge Him.

So wherever you find yourself today, turn to Him, give it all to Him, ask Him to reveal the what you can do or who can help and He will. Spend time with Him that is the most important thing to do . Rest in Him, Sit with Him Praise Him and in His grace and love He will be there.