disappointments

WHO WILL TAKE THE SON?

(February 21, 2024) GodReports shares a pointed parable…

In New Orleans, in the mid-1800s, a wealthy merchant, a widower, and his son were known for their rare collection of Old Master paintings, including a Raphael.

Often, after dinner, they would sit together and admire them.  
                                                                                                                                      
Great distress
When the Civil War broke out, the son went away to fight. He was very courageous and died in battle in the Shenandoah Valley while rescuing another soldier. The father was notified and grieved deeply.

A few months later a young man came to the door with a large package. The father answered the bell himself. ‘Sir, you don’t know me,’ said a young man carrying a package. ‘I am the soldier your son died to save.’

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GOD’S GOODNESS, OUR JOY, SATAN’S MANIPULATIONS  

(January 11, 2024) Angeline Selvakumari shares important facts… and warnings.

Yes I’m going to share about Satan’s trickery… but first, some good news! I wish you all, dear readers, a  very happy and blessed New Year!

Know that despite ongoing troubles around the world, God has graciously blessed us with another year to express gratitude for all His goodness. He will surely bless not only you but also your future generations for investing your time and tearful prayers in spreading the good news to the world. Let’s be determined to continue this great work!

I pray that the good Lord will continue to grant you wisdom to navigate this world with Godly wisdom, knowledge, good health, strength, and peace of mind. Above all, may He satisfy you with His goodness.

(i) God’s Goodness
God says, ‘My people shall be satisfied with my goodness…’ (Jeremiah 31:14NKJV).What a beautiful promise to hold onto this year – God satisfying us with His goodness! To me this means that –

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IT’S ALL ABOUT THE LITTLE THINGS

(November 23, 2022) Mama Lava shares from her heart… about heavy hearts!

Hello, my precious readers, how are you going today?

Me? Okay… but I can recall sometime back feeling heavyhearted. I think I encountered too many little things without taking the time to process them with the Lord. And it occurs to me that I might not be the only one and maybe we can encourage each other to work through our little things before they grow any more burdensome.

When something big happens, most of us know we need to stop and pray and proceed with care. When it is a little thing, it doesn’t seem as necessary.

But… too many little things can end up weighing more than a big thing and we end up with a heavy heart.

What are these little things?
What kind of little things are we talking about? Any small grievance or irritation can hang around if we don’t deal with it.

Think about a grain of sand, or a kernel of rice. They are so small and insignificant that carrying them takes no effort. But when they pile up they are heavy!

Here’s a few examples from a beach trip that my husband, Michael, and I enjoyed some time back. It was a wonderful time…  except for a handful of little things. They would hardly be noticeable, except that they were added to an already heavy pile I had growing in my heart!

Four little things from that beach weekend…

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STRUGGLING WITH DISAPPOINTMENT?

(October 14, 2021) Mama Lava shares great hope…

This post is going to write itself because I write it with tears running down my cheeks!

I had awakened with happy expectation. This was the day I had been looking forward to for quite a while because it had been entirely set aside for the enjoyment of a long-awaited opportunity. It had been circled on the calendar of my heart and anticipated with a child-like giddiness.

But… it quickly became apparent that the day wasn’t going to happen according to plan. Disappointment surged in, uninvited and unruly.

God could also change the circumstance… but I didn’t want to be further disappointed if he chose not to. I wanted him to change my attitude. Quite frankly, that day was simply the most recent in a string of struggles with disappointment. I wanted God to show me the lesson I had been needing to learn so that these kinds of situations would not hinder me anymore.

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NOT HOME YET – WORK STILL TO BE DONE!

(August 8, 2017) Maureen McQuillan encourages all who feel unappreciated …

There’s a tale that’s been around since my Sunday school days – an unsourced homecoming story that’s been told and retold over the years in various ways. Basically it goes something like this…

A missionary couple, old and wearied, was returning home to the States to retire after toiling many years in what we were told back then to capture our imagination was ‘Darkest Africa.’ Not overly successful in their missionary service they were unknowns compared to such ‘greats’ as Dr David Livingstone.

But they’d been faithful to their calling and had shared God’s love and the gospel of Jesus in many caring ways. They had reached to neighbours – strangers – not only to preach but to help in practical ways. And they would pray for the sick and needy and witness miracles – and over many years had known the joy of seeing several indigenous people accept Christ as Saviour.

This couple had grown old together as they laboured on despite many difficulties, opposition from demonic forces, misunderstandings from locals including other ministries, and even lack of meaningful prayer and financial support from their church back home. (more…)

EVERYDAY FAITH? – IT’S EVERYDAY TRUST!

dr-robert-and-maureen-092016(October 28, 2016) Robert and Maureen McQuillan share …

Chatting to a friend recently it was a delight to hear him share what was a fresh revelation to him: ‘At last I know what faith is really all about – it’s about trusting, really trusting Jesus. I know you guys have been telling me that for years – but I didn’t get it! I never realised that I had to let go and let God! Now I am… no matter even if something I need God to do, have prayed about in humble faith, doesn’t seem to be working out, I can still trust him, knowing that Jeremiah 29:11 scripture you keep reminding me about is for real, for me!’

Good news revelation indeed. And something we all need to get a grip of… after all, any new day can bring forth some storm clouds out of the blue, something unexpected can eventuate, something can go wrong. And that’s life! (more…)

HANDLING THE BLACK DOG OF DEPRESSION (July 31, 2016)

Fred & Betty EvansFred and Betty Evans share good news…

Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the western world affecting 40 million adults in the United States alone or 18% of the population.

According to Beyondblue on average, one in four people will experience anxiety at some stage in their life. Over two million Australians experience anxiety.

Recently a good pastor friend of ours, Ian Parker, preached a sermon on this subject which we thought was a succinct prescription of how to deal with this malady.

Here are some of his notes on how to deal with this often private and painful subject:

Depression is the most common form of emotional pain. There are levels of depression. Normal – Clinical – Manic. While some depression is caused by a chemical imbalance, most is caused by unfulfilled expectations. (more…)

GOD GIVES US ‘SECONDS’

Andrew CorbettAndrew Corbett challenges Christians, not just leaders, with these thoughts …

Generally I believe that a person’s past is the best indicator of his or her future. The general problem with generalities is that there are generally exceptions.

The reason is that history reveals that nearly every person who achieved anything of note had a past which bore little resemblance to their actual futures.

This is good news for people like me – I’m no exception – and perhaps it’s good news for you too. (more…)