WHAT THE LORD HAS DONE

Time with Jesus - Friday, 11 January 2013

Hi all,

In today’s meditation we reflect on what the Lord has done. Most of us have seen Him active in the lives of other people. Our problem is what happens when He is active in our own lives? How do we react? Many of us regard it as something like winning the Lotto. “That only happens to other people!” But when you find that He has been busy in your own life, it’s a different kettle of fish! It may be unbelievable!

Blessings,

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Friday, 11 January 2013			Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give
©	These devotionals are the intellectual property of Jim Strickland and copyright protected. You are welcome to copy and distribute them to anyone provided it is for non-commercial Christian purposes					©
INTRODUCTION			DAILY LIGHT EVENING SCRIPTURES	WHAT THE LORD HAS DONE
As a nine year old schoolboy at Kingswood College in Grahamstown, we would sing hymns from the Methodist Hymnbook. This happened every Wednesday after supper and before bed time. One of those Hymns still “lives in my soul!’ The words were: - In loving kindness Jesus came / My soul in mercy to reclaim, / And from the depths of sin and shame / Through grace He lifted me. CHORUS From sinking sand He lifted me / With tender hand He lifted me / From shades of night to plains of light / O Praise His name He lifted me! (Hymn 336) Charles Homer Gabriel 1856 - 1932 As a 9 year old I had no idea what I was singing about. Somehow those words just seemed to be right. I don’t know if I believed what I was singing. After all, that was 61 years ago. What I do know is that they stirred up something in me that I can never forget. I wish I had understood them and had done something about them. How was I to know that the Spirit of the Lord was drawing me to Him? Who do you talk to about something like this? Most children at that age don’t talk about God. There were other things to discuss. Top of the list was Vic Towel and his fight with Jimmy Caruthers. Then there was cricket, rugby and the latest edition for our favourite comic. On Sunday mornings we were allowed to walk to the Anglican Church for the morning service. But we had to dash back to school or we would be late. Our teacher was a lady so I couldn’t talk to her. There were prefects and other teachers. But you didn’t talk about God with men in such “lofty positions”. So it was pushed down into the sub-conscience and left until I’d grown up. There is no doubt in my mind now that the Lord was calling me into something. Back then it seemed beyond the realms of possibility. I always did well in Scripture and was very excited some 6 years later while at Marist Brothers in Walmer. We were allowed to attend confirmation classes. Of course, part of the excitement was being out of the school grounds legally for a couple of hours. After I’d been confirmed there was a sense of newness in me. But I couldn’t possibly be called by the Lord. There were no tingling sensations, No hand writing on the wall, No special letters. No burning bushes. No angels with messages. No heavenly voices. Nothing to suggest I was called. In any case, I didn’t fancy the idea of going to China or India or elsewhere for that matter. Everything was so ordinary. At the thought of going into ministry I would have freaked out. Yet all this time the Lord had been preparing me. In 1960 after ruining my life in South Africa I ended up in UK. There I came face to face with Jesus and wanted to go into the Methodist Ministry. It didn’t happen. In 1981, 30 years after singing “Sinking Sands” God opened the door. He has kept Phyllida and me ever since. Jim & Phyllida Strickland			Of David. 1 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! 2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, 3 who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, 4 who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, 5 who satisfies you with good so your youth is renewed like the eagle's. Psalm 103:1-5 ESV 33 The LORD who rules over all says, "The people of Israel are being treated badly. So are the people of Judah. Those who have captured them are holding them. They refuse to let them go. 34 But I am strong and will save them. My name is The LORD Who Rules Over All. I will stand up for them. I will bring peace and rest to their land. But I will bring trouble to those who live in Babylonia. Jer 50:33-34 NIrV 14 "I want to free them from the power of the grave. I want to reclaim them from death. Death, I want to be a plague to you. Grave, I want to destroy you. I won't even think of changing my plans." Hosea 13:14 GW 14 Because God's children are human beings--made of flesh and blood--the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could He die, and only by dying could He break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. 15 Only in this way could He set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying. Heb 2:14-15 NLT 36 That is why whoever accepts and trusts the Son gets in on everything, life complete and forever! And that is also why the person who avoids and distrusts the Son is in the dark and doesn't see life. All he experiences of God is darkness, and an angry darkness at that." John 3:36 MSG 3 Your old life is dead. Your new life, which is your real life--even though invisible to spectators - is with Christ in God. He is your life. 4 When Christ, your real life, shows up again on this earth, you'll show up, too - the real you, the glorious you. Meanwhile, be content with obscurity, like Christ. Col 3:3-4 MSG	Let’s reflect a little on what the Lord has done. Go into our memory to where we’d first begun. It gets a little scratchy. Perhaps it is unclear? Ask the Lord to show us what happened yesteryear. I haven’t any memories before the age of five. Except brief mental images that somehow do not jive. A funny looking building where once a church had been. Thick and heavy curtains which were not very clean. A very special tearoom with chairs like Micky Mouse. A great big heap of rubble where once had stood a house.  A journey on a mail boat, with just a glimpse or two, Of stairs and great big dormitories and the unending view, Of miles and miles of ocean, which never seemed to end. And of two loving parents on whom I could depend. I think that they were memories, but there are very few. Enough for me to thank the Lord, for all that He did do. Enough for me to praise Him and bless His Holy name,      Psalm 103:1-5 For bringing us to Africa. Life wouldn’t be the same, As it had been in England. It looked like fairy land. With pretty lights and beaches, with miles of golden sand! The memories get clearer in nineteen forty nine. We’d settled down in Durban and I was doing fine. The goodness of the Master was spotted all around. This land is so amazing, is truly what we found. We’d been released from bondage; the rule of God was near. Jer. 50:33-34 And we were very grateful; He’d brought us over here. The country we had left behind was in a dreadful state. The cost of reconstruction was like a ten ton weight. That great big conflagration, meant death was like the plague. Hos. 13:14 God had brought the victory; we couldn’t just renege! Christ Himself had “taken part”; the Axis power destroyed. Heb. 2:14-15 The Nazi’s looked invincible, but they were null and void. We had trusted Jesus! He had not let us down.                      John 3:36 The praying women of the land, deserved the victor’s crown! Thank God all that is over. A brand new life is ours. And where the rubble once had been, is just a sea of flowers. The old life was behind us. A new life stood before.                Col 3:3-4 Here at the foot of Africa. Lord, banish every war! Jim Strickland Written 11 January 2013

A HOLY TEMPLE

Time with Jesus - Thursday, 10 January 2013

Hi all,

Today’s meditation is on Temples, the Tabernacle and where genuine Christians fit into God’s overall programme. You and I are “bricks” in the walls of His temple. We depend on God and on each other. That’s the way He has designed things. He didn't have to, but our great-hearted God decided He would do it this way. Thank You Lord.

Blessings,

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Thursday, 10 January 2013			Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give
©	These devotionals are the intellectual property of Jim Strickland and copyright protected. You are welcome to copy and distribute them to anyone provided it is for non-commercial Christian purposes					©
INTRODUCTION			DAILY LIGHT EVENING SCRIPTURES	A Holy Temple
Construction and building programmes can be fascinating. I’ve had the privilege to work on several of them in UK, Canada and RSA. Back then, from concept to commissioning the first unit was about 10 to 12 years. In may be shorter now. In RSA the main considerations were coal and water supply along with access to the site itself. In the 1970’s, there wasn’t the emphasis on going “green” as there is today. Furthermore, RSA has huge quantities of low grade coal, unsuitable for other purposes but ideal for a power station, designed to run on that coal. It didn’t look much like the sort of coal you and I would bother with. In fact, an American who came to RSA to see what was happening, is reported to have said. “That ain’t coal, that’s real estate!” Over the past 20 odd years we have seen massive construction projects all over the world. The Chinese have built a bridge 42km long. I’m not sure I’d like to drive on it but I hear it is highly successful. In the Bible there are a number of construction projects. Apart from the pyramids and Babel, the first one is the Tabernacle in the wilderness. In a sense it was not a building as we know today. It was a tent. But it was no ordinary tent. God gave the design; the pattern; to Moses along with the instructions, that it must be made exactly according to what God had laid out. It was to be semi-portable so that it could stand in the wilderness and yet be movable. Every detail from the tent pegs to the Ark of the covenant was specified. I would love to have seen it. I’m not Jewish so I wouldn’t have been allowed inside. But from what we read in Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers, this was the most beautiful tent ever made by man. The whole thing had to be made exactly as God had specified because Jesus Christ was revealed in every item. No one knew that at the time. It’s only some 3500 years later that we can spot these things. The next major building project was Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem. It is said to be the most expensive building ever erected. It incorporated several of the design features and furnishings from the Tabernacle. In 586BC it was torn down by Nebuchadnezzar’s men. It had already fallen into a state of disrepair. A much smaller version was built by Joshua and Zerubbabel after the return of the people to Jerusalem from Babylon. Herod the Great tried to win the hearts of the Jewish people by building what is known as Herod’s Temple. It was destroyed in 70AD by the Romans under Titus just as Jesus had said it would be. The final temple comprises men and women of God. Individually we are all a temple of the Holy Spirit who dwells within God’s people. Collectively we are being built into a Holy Temple. I like the idea that Jesus Christ is our foundation and that we are built on the apostles of the New Testament and the prophets of the Old Testament. Jacob had twelve sons and there is little doubt that many of them are included among these prophets. Many years ago I remember being taught that a brick is held in position by mortar and six other bricks. This makes for strong design. Thus each of us is important individually. Collectively we become great walls protected by Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It’s a wonderful design! Jim & Phyllida Strickland			14 He said, "LORD God of Israel, there is no god like you in heaven or on earth. You keep your promise of mercy to your servants, who obey you wholeheartedly. 15 You have kept your promise to my father David, your servant. With your mouth you promised it. With your hand you carried it out as it is today. 16 "Now, LORD God of Israel, keep your promise to my father David, your servant. You said, 'You will never fail to have an heir sitting in front of me on the throne of Israel if your descendants are faithful to me as you have been faithful to me.' 17 "So now, LORD God of Israel, may the promise you made to David, your servant, come true. 18 "Does God really live on earth with people? If heaven itself, the highest heaven, cannot hold you, then how can this temple that I have built? 2 Chron. 6:14-18 GW 8 And let them make me a sanctuary, (tabernacle) that I may dwell in their midst. 9 Exactly as I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle, and of all its furniture, so you shall make it. Exodus 25:8-9 ESV 43 I will meet the people of Israel there, in the place made holy by My glorious presence. 44 Yes, I will consecrate the Tabernacle and the altar, and I will consecrate Aaron and his sons to serve Me as priests. 45 Then I will live among the people of Israel and be their God, 46 and they will know that I am the LORD their God. I am the One who brought them out of the land of Egypt so that I could live among them. I am the LORD their God. Exodus 29:43-46 NLT 18 Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive: thou hast received gifts for men; yea, for the rebellious also, that the LORD God might dwell among them. Psalm 68:18 KJV 16 And what union can there be between God's temple and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God said: "I will live in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they will be My people. 2 Cor. 6:16 NLT 19 Don't you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself 1 Cor. 6:19 NLT 22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. Eph. 2:22 ESV 28 Then the nations will know that I, the LORD, have set Israel apart as holy, because my holy place will be among them permanently.'" Ezek. 37:28 GW	There’s no God in the universe Who’s anything like You.         2 Chron. 6:14-18 No Deity imagined who can do the things You do! You don’t have a beginning. You do not have an end. The years or days or seconds. On them You don’t depend. The reason is quite simple. Lord, You created time. There was no past or future. In fact You are the prime, Reason for existence. The ever present now, Defines Your habitation and even time must bow. You have no need for buildings. A tent cannot contain, The Lord God, the Almighty, from which You’ll always reign. This planet is your footstool. The stars that shine by night, Are only the reflections of Your incandescent light. They’re “holes” within the “blanket” which “covers outer space”. Or we would be demolished by the brightness of Your face. You do not dwell with people. This place we have designed. We know it is inadequate. So Lord, please do not mind, If what we have erected looks laughable and poor. Nothing we can ever build, can ever show for sure, The Glory and the Majesty of Him Who Reigns on High. But, because we love You Lord, we thought that we should try. So we have made a sanctuary, the way that You have shown. Following the pattern, which came from You alone. Meet here with Your people. O Lord please let them see, A little of the glory and true authority, Within this tabernacle where You have said You’ll meet        Ex 25:8-9 Those committed to You, from Your Holy Mercy Seat. Dwell amongst Your people, that they may see and know, That You are always with them, no matter where they go! You led them out of Egypt. You took them  by the hand,       Ex 29:43-46 And promised You would take them to their home in Canaan Land. Separate our rebels and treat them as You should. As for those who love You. To them Lord please be good!    Psalm 68:18 Keep them free from idols. There must not be a place, Where by their behaviour, they’ll fall away from grace.             2 Cor. 6:16 Let them realise, O lord, that there will come a day, When everyone will worship in a very different way. You will dwell within them. Their God You’ll surely be. They will be Your people for all eternity. You will walk among them and they will trust in You. Collectively, Your temple, in everything they do. Empowered by Your Spirit for all the world to see,                    1 Cor. 6:19 That those who truly follow You, forevermore will be, Set apart as holy. And all will know for sure, They are Your disciples and You have made them pure.  Ezek. 37:28 Jim Strickland  Written 10th January 2013

PRIORITIES

Time with Jesus - Wednesday, 09 January 2013

Hi all,

Priorities: It’s a strange word. We must get things attended to in the right sequence. There’s always something ludicrous about a man painting himself into a corner. Now I don’t know Latin or Greek. But I do like looking at words and trying to see if I can guess where it came from? Today’s example is not all that difficult. England is a tea drinking nation. It’s almost as ritualistic as a Japanese Geisha tea party. Here in RSA people ask if I am a pre - lactarian or a post - lactarian. In other words do you add the milk to the tea, or the tea to the milk? That’s where the word “Priorities” comes from. Sophisticated English men and women always add the milk to the tea. They are post-lactarians! That’s where the word originates. It’s always Tea prior to the milk. Hence, after decades of use we get the word priority! So pick up your cup filled with hot water and tea. Add milk and you have an example of “prior-O-tea. That’s our meditation today.

Blessings,

Jim & Phyllida Strickland

Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give		Time with Jesus – Wednesday, 09 January 2013			Matt 10:8 Freely you received, Freely give
©	These devotionals are the intellectual property of Jim Strickland and copyright protected. You are welcome to copy and distribute them to anyone provided it is for non-commercial Christian purposes					©
INTRODUCTION			DAILY LIGHT EVENING SCRIPTURES	Priorities
The things we do every day are potentially life changing. The younger you are, the bigger the impact of the things you do. The decisions you make will shape your tomorrow. From personal experience, something happened to me in 1955, the effect of which is with me today. What happened was that Dad was asked to return to the Head Office in England for a refresher course. Technology was beginning to change the Power Station industry. We had been in RSA since January 1947 so there were lots of things happening; things he needed to catch up with. This meant that I was out of school in RSA from the end of the 1st school term to the beginning of the 4th and final term. For me it was more or less a six month holiday! It was a watershed year for. I loved my “holiday” over there. It’s one of the best experiences I’ve had in life. The question was whether or not I would be able to pass my standard at the end of the year. Much to everyone’s amazement, I passed. In 1956, I was sent to Marist Brothers Walmer. Dad discussed my pass with the headmaster. They decided to put me into the next standard. The class had started Latin in 1955. It was too late for me to commence these studies. As a result, I never did learn Latin. All these years later and with my passion for the things of the Lord, I should have learned Latin and Greek. Back then it was impossible. When I joined my folks in the UK in 1960, the issue was what I would do to carve out a career. This was solved about 6 months later. One day my Dad asked me if I would like to join his company as an apprentice. I said “Yes”. God alone knows why. It was a Friday morning. The company interviewed me on the Monday morning. On the Tuesday I started work in the apprentice training school. It proved to be the right thing to do from every angle. It was a priority for me to begin my working life. It was decided in a flash that Friday morning. It was critical for me to get my priorities right. If I hadn’t, I would have ended up without a career or a future. Just less than a month later I went to the Methodist Church; the church the pretty girls attended! There, I heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ preached for the first time. Overnight, Jesus Christ and His Kingdom changed my priorities. In 1963, shortly after my 21st birthday, I quit. I couldn’t do what I knew I should. My priority had been to live the Christian life. I couldn’t and still can’t! As previously mentioned, although I had quit, Jesus hadn’t. 18 years later I found that you can’t keep running away forever. My world started crumbling and in desperation I returned to the One Who had never left me. I had got my priorities all wrong. The world, work, a wife, two children, a nice home and a “company car” All of this was slowly beginning to be stripped away. In the end I realised I had to go back to my original priorities, Jesus Christ and His Kingdom. The amazing thing is that He didn’t ask me why I had quit. We picked up where I had left off. Although I lost just about everything I owned at the time, Jesus continued to pour out His grace upon me. He, once more, was my priority. He arranged things such that I met Phyllida. We married at the end of 1981. Both of us now share one priority. Serving Jesus Christ and His Kingdom. We plan on going on to the very end with Him as our one priority. Jim & Phyllida Strickland			38 Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. 39 And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. 40 But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me." 41 But the Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, 42 but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her. Luke 10:38-42 ESV 6 There are many who say, "Who will show us some good? Lift up the light of your face upon us, O LORD!" 7 You have put more joy in my heart than they have when their grain and wine abound. 8 In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety. Psalm 4:6-8 ESV For the choir director: A psalm of the descendants of Korah. 1 As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for You, O God. 2 I thirst for God, the living God. When can I go and stand before Him? Psalm 42:1-2 NLT A psalm of David, regarding a time when David was in the wilderness of Judah. 1 O God, You are my God; I earnestly search for You. My soul thirsts for You; my whole body longs for You in this parched & weary land where there is no water. Psalm 63:1 NLT 33 The true bread of God is the One who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." 34 "Sir," they said, "give us that bread every day." 35 Jesus replied, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to Me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in Me will never be thirsty. 36 But you haven't believed in Me even though you have seen Me. John 6:33-36 NLT 4 I'm asking the LORD for only one thing. Here is what I want. I want to live in the house of the LORD all the days of my life. I want to look at the beauty of the LORD. I want to worship him in his temple. Psalm 27:4 NIrV	Priorities! Priorities! We make them every day. To rush around the kitchen, or what does Jesus say? We fluster like a housewife, getting everything prepared. But sitting at the Master’s feet; for that she isn’t spared. A meal was in the making. She had to make the bread. But what was more important, was what the Master said! The Mary/Martha saga we all know very well. Mary chose to listen. Martha couldn’t tell, That she was too preoccupied with incidental things. When she could have been hearing the Lord; The King of Kings. The problem was her gender and the things which women do. She couldn’t pause a moment, to hear His words so true. In fact she was offended, with her sister sitting there. “I think she should be helping. There’s dinner to prepare.” But Jesus answered, “Martha where’s your priority? The dinner could come later. You could sit here with me! Put aside anxiety and madly fussing round. If you would come and listen, I’m sure you would have found, Time to do the housework and hear me teach as well. Mary did the right thing, as time will surely tell. This attitude of Martha was certainly not wrong. The dinner must be perfect and satisfy the throng. But Martha’s inner spirit would not be satisfied. No matter how she worked for Him it could have been denied. We need to pay attention, if we’re to hear Him speak. We may long for the water, until we’re feeling weak. We may be parched and thirsty and longing for God’s Word. But if we are too busy, His voice will not be heard. The place where we are living could be dry as dry can be. But Jesus has a sustenance that very few can see. He gives us living water; He gives life’s daily bread. He gives us all that’s needed, to do what He has said! So when we’re feeling hungry and longing for a meal. The Lord will fill our belly, with bread that is more real, Than anything the baker could lay upon your plate. And Jesus’ living-water will more than satiate. So let us set our focus, on the sustenance we need. Alter our priorities and ask the Lord to feed, Us with His living water; and bread from up above. And we will be abounding in all the Master’s love. It’s all in our priorities and that which we decide. A life of mad activity, or sitting by His side? Jim Strickland Written 9th January 2012.