Seek

This morning I was thinking about one of my favourite verses in the Bible, Matthew 6: 33, which states "seek first the kingdom of God".

I was suddenly struck by the use of the word "seek". When we examine this word in the original Greek it also means to desire, endeavour, enquire (for), require, to seek after.

This is active stuff, not passive. We have to be looking for the kingdom everyday but it will not always be obvious and certainly not always easy, but it is there to be found.

The question and challenge for me is am I looking for it hard enough and am I looking for it as much as I can? The quick and honest answer to my own question is simply No.

Sometimes it feels like too much bother, too much like hard work. But I think I am missing the point. Jesus says that He only did what He saw the Father doing already. It was not so much that He had to go looking for it but when kingdom business came across His path, He embraced it, went for it (feet first even) and was obedient to the Father!

Paul’s wise words to Timothy were always to be ready with an answer for the reason for hope that is within us , whether literal, physical or symbolic …..that’s the minimum I think we owe the world.

Andy

Poverty of Expectation

As I write this, and in one sense this post is linked to my previous one, I feel there is a real poverty of expectation across our nation, a phrase I heard many years ago.

Anything that is positive is under attack. Many who are trying to take steps forward are being knocked back at every turn.

Why is this? It is this positive, expectant attitude that will lead us to our individual and corporate destiny. Destiny is an over used word, for me it simply means fulfilling our life purpose or fulfilling what we are here for in the first place. No one is an accident! We all have a purpose! If you need help with this drop me a line or see www.equip.uk.net for our upcoming meetings and events.

We need to hold onto our dreams and visions...our destiny. We need to fight for it at this time. Imagine it as your new born baby. If anyone came long and tried to take your baby you would do everything in your power to hold onto that baby, even give your life.

We need to have exactly the same attitude to our destiny. Many will come and try and take that destiny from you but it is yours by right! Fight for it, live it, achieve it.

Andy

Truth

Successful people are not successful just because of how they deal with the good times but how they deal with bad times. We need to face the reality that there will be tough times. Maybe you are facing such a time now. It is in these times that we need to hold onto truth.

Truth is easy when things are good. Truth ultimately brings freedom and a fulfilled life, but it may be a bumpy ride along the way. Don’t give up on doing the right thing just because it has become hard. This will always happen, in fact it is the way of truth, but truth will always prevail.

At one second past midnight, ‘the darkest hour’, it is indeed a new day. King David in the Psalms writes more about these times than any other man. David was a man who knew great success but also great failure but he ultimately held onto truth. Even with his track record the bible still declares that he was a man after God’s own heart.

If David teaches us anything it is that life is not about being perfect but about giving it your best shot and if you fail dust yourself down get up and try again.

Andy

Time Marches On!

It is the management of time that is often one of life’s big challenges, especially in a society that is consumed with the notion of making every second count.

Sometimes we can become so preoccupied with managing our time that we miss ‘the moment’. Our obsession with time can lead to looking back and wondering "where has the time gone" or even wishing to have our time again. Ultimately this can be very unhelpful as we cannot do anything about the past (unless you happened to have invented the Flux Capacitor!! See Back to the Future) thus leading to a helplessness and a malaise for our life of the present.

Having our focus on time is like focusing more on the plate as opposed to the food on the plate. When we go to a restaurant it is not to admire the plate but to eat and hopefully enjoy the food. Time is the plate that holds our life. We need to focus on who we are and what we want to do, not on how long we have got!

In the film Finding Forrester the young writer is encouraged by the ageing author (played by Sean Connery) to just write, not to think about what he is writing but to just let it flow out of him. It is the process of writing that makes someone a writer!

Maybe this is how we should live life, just live it, get on with it, do your best, have a go, dive in (feet first even) and see what happens. Stop planning and seeing if you have the time because as we all know one day we won’t.

Andy