North England Conference of Seventh-day Adventists Personal Ministries

YOU ARE CHOSEN IN THE FURNACE OF AFFLICTION!!!

Isaiah 48:10 Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.

The great evangelist and teacher Charles Spurgeon had a plaque on his bedroom with the words written on it, "I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction."

Spurgeon, writing about the trials and afflictions that the saints endure, said, "It is no mean thing to be chosen of God." He continued, "God's choice makes chosen men choice men … we are chosen, not in the palace, but in the furnace. In the furnace, beauty is marred, fashion is destroyed, strength is melted, glory is consumed; yet here eternal love reveals its secrets, and declares its choice."

In the midst of trials and tribulations comes the burning question: "Why do the righteous suffer?" Some answer with theology, others with platitudes; C.S. Lewis offers a rhetorical, "Why not? They're the only ones who can take it!"

One friend suggests, "Suffering was the personal choice of God at the beginning of creation. [Revelation 13:8] If I want to know Him personally and intimately how can I not embrace it?"

Embrace your trial and the suffering involved, but only if you want a deeper relationship with your personal Saviou
r.

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Wednesday: WISDOM

If you are wise and understand God’s ways, prove it by living an honourable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom.- But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere.
James 3:13, 17 (NLT)

The wisdom that God desires includes morality, prudence, humility, gentleness, love, mercy, and good deeds. It seems that God is more interested in how we apply what we know, especially in the way that we relate to others. You can be intellectually right, yet morally wrong in the way you use your knowledge.

To be right, yet arrogant, unloving and proud is not real wisdom. Might God grant us the understanding that real wisdom is, “peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere.”

PRAYER
Father, I ask for your wisdom in all that I do. With that wisdom, please help me be gentle, humble, loving and merciful.

Monday Motivation
OPEN MY EYES, LORD

Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law. — Psalm 119:18

After rising from the dead, Jesus met several times with his followers. On the road to Emmaus, while he walked along with two of them, they didn’t know who he was while he taught all about himself from the Scriptures. Only later, when he broke bread with them, were their eyes opened to see him as the Messiah, God’s Anointed One, the Saviour (Luke 24:13-35).

For us to see and understand Jesus in the Scriptures, we too need our eyes opened. Although the psalmist couldn’t see Jesus or know what we know about Jesus today, the psalmist certainly understood the need for eyes to be opened to understand God’s Word.

Without our eyes opened, God’s Word can seem like a legalistic code to measure how others—and we—fail to live righteously. With our eyes opened, we see in God’s Word the living God who graciously reveals himself to us. We learn how to live the way God intends for us. We ultimately find the “wonderful things” of God’s grace and mercy—above all, in God’s gift of Jesus—and we live in gratitude for all he has done for us.

Morning All (Just a little while longer, Sabbath is on its way)
LITTLE STRENGTH

“I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.” — Revelation 3:8

Jesus’ letter to the church in Philadelphia is filled with praises and promises. This is a letter of love and encouragement. Encouragement from Jesus is what this church needed for the long road of faithful obedience.

Faithful followers of Jesus experience many disappointments and difficulties. I would often attempt to encourage them with Bible passages like Psalm 23: “The Lord is my shepherd. . . .” But some would respond, saying, “Pastor, the words of Psalm 22—‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’—speak more honestly of my life experience.”

I often wondered what Jesus would say to these hurting friends. The letter to the church in Philadelphia is Jesus’ word to his hurting people. “I know that you have little strength,” he says, “yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.” Jesus knows how tired we can get from walking the long road of obedience, “even . . . through the darkest valley,” as Psalm 23 explains.

Like a long-distance runner who needs encouragement for the last part of a race, we need Jesus to cheer us on to keep his word and not deny his name.

May God give you the grace to endure patiently today and to trust that Jesus will do all he promises for the ones he loves dearly.

Prayer: Dear Lord, sometimes I’m tired and have little strength to hold on to you. You are Almighty God. Help me to endure with patient persistence. Amen

Father we thank You that despite knowing everything about us, You love us regardless...

CONTINUALLY SURROUNDED

“The LORD’s unfailing love surrounds the man who trusts in him. Rejoice in the LORD
and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart!” Psalm 32:10, 11

God controls and allows
every detail of our lives. Nothing happens without His knowledge and approval.

Every day, little changes in schedule or small irritations occur. Everyday, we can
choose to let these obstacles upset us, or we can rest in the knowledge that God lovingly ordained them as small irritants to help us look to and rely on Him. For example, we can grumble about the frustrating traffic jam that is keeping us from getting somewhere on time, or we can remember that God knows about our deadlines and view the time sitting in traffic as an opportunity to pray. We can complain, or we can rejoice.

May we allow the knowledge that we are continually surrounded by God’s unfailing love to permeate our lives and chase away our complaints and fears.

Sabbath is coming! Thank God.
Good morning.

Father You know our situation, our feelings, our thoughts, and sometimes it does feel that nobody cares, but Father, deep within our hearts, we do know that You Do care. We ask You to help us see the beauty in unexpected places and release us from our prison of despair.

A FLOWER FOR YOU!

Romans 15:13 Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.

I heard a story about a man who was imprisoned during Napoleon's reign. While sulking in his dungeon one day, he etched on the wall the words "Nobody Cares".

A few weeks later, through a crack in the dungeon floor, a little green shoot sprang forth, reaching toward the tiny ray of sunlight that came from his small prison cell window. The prisoner began giving a portion of his daily water to the little shoot and it began to grow. One morning the man awoke to a beautiful flower. A tear rolling down his face, he crossed out the words, "Nobody Cares" and replaced them with "God Cares."

The story goes on to tell that His devotion to the flower was reported to the Empress Josephine. She was so very moved that she convinced Napoleon to set the man free.

How many times do we feel like "Nobody Cares"? God has planted little shoots of hope in each and every one of our difficult circumstances -- do you know that? Perhaps we're stepping on them, not even noticing they exist. Perhaps we're pulling the shoots before they spring forth into beautiful flowers.

God wants us to be released from our prisons of despair. Look around! See what God has planted since the beginning of time especially for us today. Be encouraged!

Monday Ministering

Father please help us to learn more about heaven and to long to be there.

A PLACE CALLED HEAVEN

John 14:1-3

If you asked a dozen people what they know about heaven, you’d probably get all sorts of answers. Even Christians have various ideas about what it is, where it’s located, and what it will be like. Some people imagine heaven to be an ethereal, dream-like place where the inhabitants are vaporous spirits—but this is contrary to what the Bible teaches.

Put simply, heaven is the home of God. Separate from and beyond creation, it’s an entirely different realm of existence. But it is a literal place with form and substance, and it contains the holy city. The apostle John had a vision of this place, and what he saw is recorded for us in chapters 21 and 22 of Revelation. A wall with foundation stones and gates surrounds the city, which has a street, a river, God’s throne, and the tree of life. All of these are material objects, although they far exceed anything of earthly substance.

Jesus told His disciples that He was going away to prepare a place for them in His Father’s house. He also said He’d return to take them there so they could be with Him forever. Then they watched as His resurrected body ascended from the earth and returned to heaven (Acts 1:9). He is still there today in His physical body, sitting at the right hand of the Father’s throne.

When Christ returns, He will resurrect Christians who have died, transform the bodies of believers who are still alive, and take us all back to the eternal home He has prepared for all His followers. Only then will we finally understand what heaven is.

Thank God Sabbath is on its way!
IS THERE HOPE?

If God is for us, who can be against us? Romans 8:31

In his letter to the believers in Rome, the apostle Paul expressed his complete confidence in the reality of God’s love regardless of circumstances. He asked with boldness, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31). If God gave His very own Son, Jesus, to save us, then He will provide everything we need to finish this life well. Paul listed seven seemingly unbearable situations that he himself faced: trouble, hardship, persecution, famine, nakedness, danger, and the sword (v. 35). He didn’t imply that Christ’s love would stop bad things from happening. But Paul said that “in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (v. 37).

Through the uncertainty of this world, God can be trusted completely, knowing that nothing, absolutely nothing, “will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (v. 39).

When you face seemingly hopeless situations, how do you typically respond? What promise of God can you cling to, knowing He is faithful?

Faithful Father, thank You for Your Son’s sacrifice so that I can have eternal life. Thank You that, no matter how gray life may seem, I can trust in Your promises

HOW DO YOU HANDLE ADVERSITY?

“If you have raced with men on foot, and they have wearied you, how will you compete with horses? And if in a safe land you are so trusting, what will you do in the thicket of the Jordan? (Jeremiah 12:5)

How do you handle adversity and great odds against you? Do you cower in a corner and hope it goes away? Do you operate in fear and worry, become fretful and overwhelmed? Do you break down and blame others making excuses?

Jeremiah was dealing with adversity in his life. In short, what Jeremiah endured at the hands of the evil priests who were plotting his death because he remained faithful to the Lord was nothing compared to the persecution to come. If he couldn’t handle persecution in peace time, he was going to fall when the real adversity came.

How are you responding to adversity and persecution now, because the real persecution will come to the believer.

Father, we are more than conquerors, so give us Your might and strength to overcome the adversities when it comes, in Jesus’ mighty name!

Are you a Contagious Disciple? 31 January - 2 February 2020

Thank God it's Friday (Sabbath)
TRUST GOD IN THE DARKNESS

I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me. I could ask the darkness to hide me and the light around me to become night—but even in darkness, I cannot hide from you. To you, the night shines as bright as day. Darkness and light are the same to you.
Psalms 139:7-12

Robert M. Cheyne wrote, “If I could hear Christ praying for me in the next room, I would not fear a million enemies! Yet distance makes no difference. He is praying for you.”

Where are you today? Are you in the light? Praise God, soak it in. Be thankful, learn at the feet of Christ so you will have plenty to guide you in the dark. Are you in the dark today? Stop for a moment. Quiet yourself. Listen for His voice. He is there with you. Remember the light and walk in the darkness with the same faith. The light will come in the morning!