Feeling Irritable..? 

I am. I’m so annoyed by sometimes the smallest of things. I’m going to be honest here guys. And hey, yes I’m aware of it. I know for sure some people will say, “Oh dear, how can you say that, you’re a Christian!” Or they will be shocked at the fact you are feeling angry, or that things are bugging you majorly. Maybe I didn’t have enough to eat or maybe I am stressed, whatever it is, I am going to hold my hands up and say no I’m not always the graceful Christian I am trying to portray. 

Honesty is the first step. Let’s face it, I did wrong and I accept and take full responsibility for my sin. Please remember though guys it’s not a sin to be angry, it’s the reaction you have while you are angry. 

Usually when I’m in this state, I forget what I need to do because I’m so distracted by my selfish feelings. Why didn’t that person do that for me, why isn’t anything going right, why is that kid screaming so loud on the train. It all gets abit much and before I notice, my attitude begins to show I’m flustered and annoyed. It’s important to have reflection with God on your behaviour daily. Go through the events of your day with him and ask him to help guide and control those feelings you feel you are unable to. 

What did I do wrong? 

Did I react in the right way as a Christian? 

It’s important to remember, as soon as you feel the peace of God moving away from you and you begin to get irritated, remember Gods way. His peace and his grace. Sometimes the change is so subtle you don’t even realise that your spirit has changed. Let’s keep on top of this guys. Let’s pray that God will give us the grace to react with peace humility and kindness, even in the hardest of situations because isn’t that what matters? 

It’s how we react when we are in adversity, not when everything is fine. How to react when we are feeling low, sad, upset, angry and ignored. This is what builds character. This is was allows us to be more like Christ. To be more loving, more understanding, to know the unconditional love that Jesus talks about and has for us continually. We should start sharing that. 

So the next time you feel irritated, focus on building character and not anger. Sounds like a plan right? 

Manassa 

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Thoughts and Feelings Snippet 

Wow. The word of God really hit home today. We were in discussion about Gods grace and how we are forever disappointed and let down by own own efforts to please God. That grace Is our link to the cross. That sin is a disease, a deadly catalyst that drives us away from the living God. That we are on a journey, we won’t become like Jesus overnight. That what’s important is that others see the love of Jesus in our churches, homes, meetings and hearts. God is infallible and his word is unchanging. Don’t give up in your walk with God, be strong, when you fall or fail, get back up and proclaim God victorious over the struggles in your life.God bless friends,

Manassa 

Death

A life is a death. What does it mean? Your feet barely hit the ground as you are pulled back up again into an amazing fall. A life is a blink. A sea of uncertain and ever-changing feelings. You think you know yourself. You don’t. You change. You fall. Then you realize. It comes like an inevitable revolution and thunders towards you. And you can’t stop it. Fear climbs up your body and into you mind as your weak hands try to make a cushion for the impact. Then calm. As death passes light now emerges. A heavenly light that you were told about. Somehow, you know this is your home. A death has amounted to a whole new life with him…

Blood Of Christ

The blood dripped out of his helpless body. As he lay there, you think of how it could have possibly went this far. The thundering rain hit your face violently as your were sickened with anger and confusion. The sky groaned, and the clouds refused to open their glory in the hours that followed. Grey. You stand in horror with the mud building at your knees. His face seems enlightened although lifeless. You are ignorant of the life that now rushes into your once dead soul, now that he has passed.You groan at his feet in pain as he gives you the gift of eternal life…

The Most Deceiving Lie Told To Christians…

Many Christians believe that we can never achieve perfection right? Now I’m not saying that we are perfect (far from it) but God’s word proves the possibility of perfection under obedience. Now this idea of always being a slave to sin had me too, until God showed me a little something from his word…

Romans 6:17-18 “But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, 18 and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness”

Here it says in black and white that sin has no power over us, (no matter how much we are tempted) and that we now have the power, through the sacrifice of our father Jesus Christ. Doesn’t this kind of defeat the object of him dying in the first place if we were not set free from our sins? We are all with sin, but this my no means means that we cannot be free from it.

I’ve heard many preachers and famous pastors saying that we will never be perfect and that we will always be with sin and knowing what God had shown me made me realize that they were teaching a massive lie. The object here is to dishearten Christians and make them comfortable with the idea of sinning, a tool used so subtly by the devil. If he can get you to think this way, then it’ll be easier for his sin to continue a hold in your life. It’s a deadly lie that can be easy to accept.

We have some role models from the bible that prove the idea of pleasing God by maturing without sin. Enoch and Elijah are the only two people God took to heaven without them dying.Genesis 5:24tells us, “Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.”Second Kings 2:11 tells us, “Suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind.” Enoch is described as a man who “walked with God for 300 years”. Elijah was perhaps the most powerful of God’s prophets in the Old Testament.

Now I’m not saying that you must wake up tomorrow without no sin, but God has given us the power to slowly become like him in every way. It’s our choice whether to step into that or not. It’s time to open our eyes and not be fooled by the lies of the devil.

Thanks for reading, keep following & blogging bloggers! God bless 🙂

Modern Life: The Truth about our Generation

Modern life is changing. The way that we live and think is effecting us more than we know or could ever anticipate. What does this mean for us in the future and the society we will be forced to live in?

The morals and standards of people living today are dropping fast, homes have become divided, people no longer want to “get involved” to stand up for what is right anymore and general morals and standards are also becoming a thing of the past. Let’s take a look at some modern life statistics…

In the 1970’s just 8% of households were headed by a lone parent, but by 2011 that figure had reached 22 per cent. This was mirrored by a fall in the number of two-parent families – either those married or cohabiting – from 92 per cent at the beginning of the 1970s to 78 per cent in 2011. There are now almost twice as many people living alone than 40 years ago (The 2011 General Lifestyle Survey Overview from the Office for National Statistics.) Now I’m not saying that people who come from single parent homes are bad or that they are less valuable than others, not at all because I know what that feels like but the point Is that God intended a mother and father to raise a child to bring stability and happiness. Males without a father figure can suffer the effects of misguidance and  anger, due the fact they haven’t seen that positive male model in their lives. On the other hand, females without a decent mother figure can be more vulnerable to feelings of low self-esteem and loss of decency, not having seen that positive image of how to be a lady from a mother. The effects can be detrimental in young and later life, yet we are seeing more of this type of lifestyle.

Approximately 91% of women are unhappy with their bodies and resort to dieting to achieve their ideal body shape. Studies show that the more reality television a young girl watches, the more likely she is to find appearance important.More than 1/3 of the people who admit to “normal dieting,” will merge into pathological dieting. Roughly 1/4 of those will suffer from a partial or full-on eating disorder. 58% of college-aged girls feel pressured to be a certain weight. (Source, doomething.org) This is a perfect example of modern life. People are now judging others purely based on looks. The effects of vanity are having a really bad effect on young people today, and body image is now seen to be the most important thing, overriding personality, interests and other internal factors. Well, God said this would happen, “for in the last days, men shall be lovers of themselves…” 2 Timothy 3:2. The bible speaks of how people will get more vain and selfish leading up to his return.

I watched a show the other night about live crimes and how they were dealt with. The show did an experiment, they set up a woman getting robbed by a man, both were actors. They began with shouting and the man was shouting abuse at the woman. This was done in a busy town centre, so plenty of people were walking around at this time. By the time they were shouting, people just looked, but carried on. This is maybe understandable, my thoughts were I’d probably think they were a couple and wouldn’t want to get involved either, but things began to get a little heated in the next scenario… The man then began to grab quite aggressively at her bag openly. People this time took more notice, but instead of intervening, the scene began to gather a small crowd! I couldn’t believe it, I was literally shouting at the TV! This went on for a good 5 minutes, then the actor grabbed the bag off the other actor and started to run away. At this point a man came from nowhere and dived on the “thief”. He was later told it was an experiment, and was happy that he got involved. This shocked me, that and many other examples show how people are loosing natural affection and sympathy. “Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold.” Matthew 24:12 This is another perfect example of the scriptures revealing modern life and how people’s thought’s and feelings are changing around us.

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Those are just some of the ways modern life is effecting us and what we are living around. It’s good to know what we are facing day to day. We need to stay close to God and let him lead us through the tough times ahead. Thanks for reading this post, be sure to follow the blog. Bye for now guys xoxo

 

The Journey Of The Apostles Begins: Acts Chapter 3

 

The chapter begins with Peter and John going up to the temple at the ninth hour. The number nine in biblical terms mean to achieve something, so here’s where it links in. The next verse says “and a certain lame man from his mother’s womb was carried,” so this man was carried into the temple where Peter and John were, at the ninth hour, very important. As the lame came in to ask for charity, Peter said, “silver and gold I have none; but such as I have give I thee: in the name of Jesus Christ get up and walk.” The man was healed in the ninth hour, but more importantly, his soul was saved and salvation had been achieved in the ninth hour (Jesus died on the ninth hour, the hour of completion, “it is finished”) Can you see the significance here?

Peter then in verse 12 addressed the crowd and asked them why they were so shocked, “Ye men of Israel, why ye marvel at this,” he told them that these miracles and signs they were seeing were all part of the beginning of Gods glory on earth in the following verses. Peter was so humble, he showed Jesus to be the one who deserved all the credit in verse 13, “for this it is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob – the God of all our ancestors who has brought glory to his servant Jesus by doing this.” Peter was focused and totally understood where the power from these miracles were coming from and he didn’t let the praise of the locals change him. As  he continued to preach to the crowd, he confronts the issue of the death of Christ and the views of the people. He explains that he now understands that the people of Israel put Jesus to death through ignorance.

The people didn’t understand who they were putting to death and that was the problem, their lack of knowledge and faith that Jesus was who he said he was, even though the prophecy was written in their holy books, they still didn’t believe. Peter knew this and he felt no revenge or need to avenge Jesus’ death because he knew the people were spiritually immature, they didn’t understand. What they needed, was teaching, they needed to understand Gods laws and Jesus’ life, although they were a part of it. Peter seized this opportunity to teach and speak to the people in the temple here and thoroughly explain Gods plans, “now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away…” Now was the time for teaching to be done, so that the gospel of Christ could be spread throughout the world.

 

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Thanks for reading this post, keep a look our for the next one in this Apostles edition. Be sure to follow the blog too, thanks again for reading!

The voice in the Alley: Crying out for change

He stood and stared into the darkness with bloodshot, sunken eyes. His body stagnant with the tiredness of life. The sudden welling of water in his eyes made him seem scared and alone as a tear fell down his wrinkled cheek. “I love you”, a voice like rushing water surrounded him like a flood. The alley seemed mysterious as it made dark shapes. This voice was suddenly recognised. He knew this was God.

Previously…

There he was in the street, shouting and swaying as he staggered out the bar. All his friends seemed to go away as the night dragged on. He was left alone. In the dead of night city lights, he wondered out toward his home. A blurred image approached him and then went away like a passing car. “Come back!” he slurred, lights seemed to fade away and merge together into one darkness. Then black. He woke the next morning with the sound of rushing cars outside his flat window and the familiar smell of city life. His head thumping in his skull. The light hurt his eyes, the feeling of loneliness and confusion lingered and held its place in the room. His clothes, drained in alcohol from the night before. He waited. He lay there for a while, thinking if he had a place in the world, why he had such an empty feeling everyday he woke, why he hated himself so much, he tried desperately to drink himself to death.  These thoughts seemed to rush around in his mind like a furious hurricane, it later calmed, interupted by the beeping of cars outside.

He dragged himself out his chair and stared vaguely at the four walls that surrounded him. “Jason!” Someone called him and banged on the door. He rubbed his head with his battered hand. “John!” Then more banging. “What?!” He finally answered and made a slow move to the door. Latch by latch he unlocked it and a familiar face was seen through the portrait gap. When John realised who it was, his heart sunk in his chest and his palms became sweaty. The mans face was narrow and stern as he frowned impatiently. He wore a black cloak-like coat and a brown winter scarf. The man pushed his way in and commanded his attention with his actions. “What did I tell you?” He got straight to the point, didn’t waste any time. Looking swiftly at his watch, he brushed his hair with his long hands. “I don’t have time for this, I told you, you had five days. You blew it. You don’t care, so neither do I. Your out today.” Life stopped around John and his heart with it, he tried to sync the sound with his lips, but time seemed to stay still in that moment. “But you said I had more time,” his voice crumbled into a timid shudder. Silence. The man looked at John as if it were code. His eyes went right through him and stared viciously into the wall behind. He was nothing. At least that’s how he felt. The man got up out the bruised chair and made his way quickly out the room. John watch him hopelessly through the window as he disappeared into the bustling city street. John took a few moments. He rubbed his tired eyes and tried to come to terms with the truth as he cradled his weak head in his hands.

immediately, John packed his tattered bag with what he had left and rushed out the door. As he made his way down the flights of stairs, he noticed eyes watching him through one of the corridor windows. Feeling embarrassed, he continued out into the street. Where was he going? He didn’t know, he just walked and walked for hours, the city changed around him as it became dark and rowdy. The lights called him into the tempting nightlife, but now that didn’t seem to matter to him anymore. He wasn’t lured into the drunkenness that helped him waste his life away. Instead, he made his way through the lights into a familiar park he had once been in. The way seemed clear, although the surroundings were deceiving and dark. He entered, there was a small shelter which he spotted. It seemed bleak, but safe.

Carefully preparing his sleeping bag, he now felt the cold tugging his hands and feet like a child. The stars seemed mysterious and the night uncaring. Hunger began to cry out like a deafening silence that couldn’t be ignored, but it had to be. Then, he noticed a piece of broken glass not far from where he lay. “Go on,” he heard a strange, yet quiet whisper, like a hissing snake, telling him to end it all. “It will be easy.” The darkness played games with his mind as it came and went like the tide. It seemed like an easy way out. Not questioning the origin of the voice, he grabbed the slate of glass and began to cut.

A large drop of blood fell on the cold concrete. Then another. Pain rushed to his wrist a little after.

He stopped. “I can’t,” he whispered. “I can’t” the whisper turned into a distressed cry, it echoed around and the birds fled from the surrounding trees into the night. John began to weep and his soul released his sadness, he wailed himself to sleep.

Then tugging, “Hey.”

He felt someone pulling him from his rest. A man, like him, alone and anxious looking. The stench of alcohol reached his nose. “Hey, this is my spot, you’re in my spot.” The man insisted. It was still dark, John felt worn out and overwhelmed. “What did you do to yourself?” the guy slurred as he observed the redness around his wrist and the stained blood on the cold concrete. “It’s nothing,” John began to gather himself together, not wanting to resist. He covered his wrist and started out again as he walked from the park with the mans silhouette slowly disappearing in the darkness. The man stood and stared back as far as he could see into the distance. John walked past the park rails and back into the city streets. He paused for a while, the sound of cars and clubs ringing in his ears. He then came across an alley…

Turning in, he felt he wanted to be alone. He stood and stared into the darkness with bloodshot, sunken eyes. His body stagnant with the tiredness of life. The sudden welling of water in his eyes made him seem scared and alone as a tear fell down his wrinkled cheek. “I love you”, a voice like rushing water surrounded him like a flood. The alley seemed mysterious as it made dark shapes. This voice was suddenly recognised. He knew this was God. God compiled his life into a snapshot in a split second before his eyes. His life had suddenly changed forever.

This is just a short story of how Life-changing God is. There are loads of real-life stories like this one, where God has broken drink problems, drug problems, emotional issues ect in people’s lives. This short story is about someone giving up and being at their last resort in life. God knows us fully and he wants the best for us. If we let him into our lives and commit ourselves to him, he will take us into his hands, forever. Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed the story. Keep your eyes peeled for the next post!