Marching Forth!

Yesterday a concrete footpath was poured by contractors near our house, and I was left shaking my head when I went to inspect the work.  Someone decided they would be the first to walk on the finished concrete before it was dry and left permanent impressions of their footsteps.  I wondered if the person who walked on the concrete realised it was still wet, and intentionally marring the finish was a twisted way to have fun.  Possibly the person was clueless about the concrete underfoot because of enjoyment of a funny podcast, an engaging conversation or the shock of hearing bad news.  As long as that concrete remains, the wandering footprints will always provoke questions about what that person was thinking--or if he or she was thinking at all. I noticed other, more predictable markings on the fresh concrete:  names scrawled in the surface with the date.  I suspect these are the names of the neighbourhood kids who were hanging around the area after the work ...

" I thank You and praise You, O God of my fathers; You have given me wisdom and might,  a nd have now made known to me what we asked of You,  f or You have made known to us the king's demand ." Daniel 2:23 Daniel and his fellow wise men were in dire need of divine revelation concerning king Nebuchadnezzar's dream, for their lives were on the line.  He and his Hebrew brethren sought God on the matter, and the LORD was merciful to reveal Nebuchadnezzar's dream and the interpretation to Daniel in a vision.  It is no wonder Daniel thanked and praised God for giving Him wisdom about the king's secret and thus spared his life and others who served king Nebuchadnezzar.  God's people ought always to thank and praise Him for answered prayer, yet genuine faith shines brighter when we experience pain, suffering, loss and still praise and bless our good God. When the children of Israel languished in a time of war and trouble, Jeremiah recognised it was only by the...

" These will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are with Him are called, chosen, and faithful ." Revelation 17:14 Jesus is described as one day returning to earth with His saints in judgment over Satan, the antichrist and the world.  God's people, born again by faith in Jesus and given eternal life by Him, are " called, chosen and faithful ."  It is good for us to realise this is not some sort of divine fate at work, but everyone who follows Jesus faithfully has been called and chosen by Him.  We love Him because He first loved us. Judas Iscariot gives us great insight into this matter, for he was called by Jesus to follow Him.  Of the many disciples Jesus had, Judas was chosen to be one of His 12 apostles Jesus sent out.  We know Judas had responsibilities among the apostles to responsibly handle the money of the group, yet sadly he was a thief.  He was called and chosen but n...

" So it was that the ark remained in Kirjath Jearim a long time; it was there twenty years. And all the house of Israel lamented after the LORD ." 1 Samuel 7:2 After the Ark of the Covenant was taken by the Philistines to their country, it remained there for seven months.  Whilst the Ark was passed from city to city, God plagued the Philistines with great destruction.  The situation became so dire the Philistines decided the only remedy was to return the Ark to Israel with a trespass offering, and the five lords of the Philistines each providing a golden image of a rat that plagued the land and their tumours that caused them to suffer greatly. The Israelites were harvesting wheat in Beth Shemesh when they saw the Ark of God on a new wooden cart amble into their land.  The people rejoiced exceedingly the Ark had been returned to them, and they promptly used the cart for firewood and sacrificed the oxen to the LORD as a burnt offering.  However, the joyous celebratio...

God is a Saviour Who gives eternal life to all who trust Him, a life so powerful it overcomes death.  As our risen LORD Jesus demonstrated through His death, burial and resurrection, the process to enter eternal glory often involves the physical death of the body.  This is true concerning those who come to faith in Christ and are martyred during the Great Tribulation.  As Jesus laid down His life for lost sinners on Calvary, so they will choose to lay down their lives for His sake.  It is a privilege and honour believers embrace by following in our Saviour's footsteps and surrender our lives for Jesus Who joyfully did so for us. Revelation 15:2-4 describes a heavenly scene that includes this group of victorious martyrs:  " And I saw something like a sea of glass mingled with fire, and those who have the victory over the beast, over his image and over his mark and over the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, having harps of God.  3 They sin...

When people are born again by faith in Jesus, the Holy Spirit regenerates us spiritually and indwells us.  One aspect of His powerful influence and impact on our lives is described by Paul in Ephesians 6 through the analogy of amour that protects us in the spiritual battle we find ourselves.  Believers are called to understand how the Holy Spirit works in our lives and gives us victory over Satan's attacks so we can stand strong in the LORD and in the power of His might. A passage I read in Gurnall's book,  The Christian in Complete Armour, affirms something I long have believed:  rather than habitually "putting on the armour of God" daily, we are never to take it off, walking in the Holy Spirit to do what pleases God.  Should one of Satan's flaming arrows find its mark or we fall into sin, there can be a correlation with our negligence to appropriate all God has provided for our successful sanctification.  The exhortation to "put on" the armour of God ...

" Trust in the LORD with all your heart, a nd lean not on your own understanding;  6  in all your ways acknowledge Him, a nd He shall direct your paths ." Proverbs 3:5-6 It is one thing to trust the LORD Who rules and reigns over all to save us, and it is another to continue trusting Him in all our ways, all our days.  Should we experience anxiety, worry and troubled thoughts, it is evidence we are not trusting the LORD God with all our heart.  When we are overwhelmed with a current dilemma it is often because we cannot envision a remedy obtainable by our best efforts.  We are disturbed and restless when we lean on our own understanding which is finite, and thus we often forget about God's power and promises to us. The children of Israel were obedient to God's command through Joshua as they approached Jericho, a massive stronghold they lacked the ability to conquer themselves.  After God miraculously gave them the victory, they turned their eyes to the n...