Marching Forth!

" You have set our iniquities before You, o ur secret sins in the light of Your countenance ." Psalm 90:8 The grace of God has been on display before Moses the servant of God penned this psalm inspired by the Holy Spirit.  God knows everything about us even though we have sinned.  He knows of our secret sins (ones we may not yet be aware of) and remains loving and compassionate toward us.  Our patience quickly runs out for "slow" learners, but God is patient with even the stubborn and disobedient.  If God will not write us off, we ought not to write anyone else off either. The key verse of this mornings's message at Calvary Chapel Sydney was  1 John 1:9  which reads, " If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness ."  As God's children, if we will meet His conditions to freely admit our guilt, He will pardon us of the sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. ...

Last night I prayed that God would give "light at the end of the tunnel."  No sooner had the words left my mouth I was instantly convicted by the Holy Spirit.  Certainly God knew what I meant, but being unbiblical I was struck with the realisation it was not a prayer God would honour.  His gentle, gracious correction was appreciated and thus my perspective and prayers changed. The cliche "light at the end of the tunnel" is often employed to suggest there is a new glimmer of hope in our circumstances.  Our situation and all around us seems dark, but light implies there is hope ahead.  Instead of looking with eyes of faith, it perceives good changes await us in the future.  The end of our trial is in sight, and we can rest assured (based upon what we see) a good outcome lays before us.  Brothers and sisters, let us not forget God has promised never to leave or forsake us.  Jesus Christ is the Light of the World, and in Him is no darkness at all! ...

God's ways are higher and better than man's ways.  All God made is good, but men lose the plot by going their own way.  It seems like these days the push for "social justice" and "equality" has been frenetic.  Many people feel their "rights" are being trampled through government overreach and a lack of representation.  There appears to be an overweening sense of entitlement among people which is being expressed through protests, rallies, and proposed legislation (and pushing back against said legislation). I saw a sign the other day which read, " Equality is a right ."  I cannot agree with this statement wholesale (as catchy and popular as it might be), because the truth of it depends upon the context.  First of all, this view can only be sustained by acknowledging God's existence and rule as the United States "Declaration of Independence" states, "W e hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created eq...

A Melbourne cafe has been international news of late for a chalkboard sign  which clearly states the shop's principles.  The part which had people talking was the 18% tax placed upon men to draw awareness of a "gender pay gap" according to statistics.  As a man, the statement of the cafe being a " space by women for women " does nothing to make me feel like a welcomed or valued patron.  I appreciate the candour of the establishment, but I would choose to buy coffee elsewhere.  They are free to to business as they want, and I am free to buy coffee or a meal at the venue of my choice.  Works for me! Whether you agree with the ideology of the cafe or not, one thing I applaud management for is taking a clear stand even when it is a debatable or potentially unpopular one.  Instead of creating a meaningful conversation, however, this sort of stance seems to promote division and isolation.  Followers of Jesus have to navigate the troubled waters of ...