cross

In His Hands

April 18, 2025Christian, Uncategorizedaffirmation, bible, Christian, christianencouragement, church, cross, crucifixion, daily, Daily Devotion, Daily devotional, Daily readings, Easter, encouragement, faith, god, good friday, guidance, inspiration, jesus, Jesus Christ, Prayer, Resurrection, Women, WorshipFace in the Sunlight Leave a comment

It’s Good Friday today and though we think about it regularly, it’s the day we particularly choose to remember what Jesus did for us on and through the cross. If He suffered such a terrible death, why do we call it ‘Good’?? It’s hard for us to imagine what Jesus went through, which would have been terrible and absolutely excruciating, and He willingly did that so that He/God could have a close relationship with you and I and so that the sacrifice would be paid for the debt of all we do wrong, so when we pass away from this world, we will spend forever in heaven with him. We know that transition is quick because Jesus said to the repentant man on the cross beside Him, “I promise you—this very day you will enter paradise with me.” Luke 23:43 TPT

Christ suffered for our sins [the wrong things we’ve done] once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit. 1 Peter 3:18 NLT

Now, because of His sacrifice, Jesus is with us in everything we do. He is with us when we go through the difficult times and He is with us when we celebrate and feel great. Thanks to His incredible sacrifice, when you go through hard times in your life, you can look to Him for help and for comfort. Christians will often use the phrase “place it in His hands.” The Bible says in 1 Peter 5:7 TPT

“Pour out all your worries and stress upon him and leave them there, for he always tenderly cares for you.”

Incredible! So, how do we actually do that?

It all centres around sharing and believing. When we keep things inside, they often build up, and our anxiety can rage. We need to believe that He’s there and He’s listening. You can literally talk out loud to God/Jesus or do it in your mind and heart and tell Him how you’re feeling. You don’t need to use elaborate language, just chat with Him like you would your partner or a friend. It’s amazing how much better you feel in sharing it with Him, but so much more than that, you’re actually giving Him permission to work in your life and on your behalf. The really difficult thing is not ‘placing’ it in His hands, it’s ‘leaving’ it there. We want to be in control but the truth is we can’t be anyway. Jesus says in Luke

“Does worry add anything to your life? Can it add one more year, or even one day?” Luke 12:25 TPT

We need to believe that God is in control. He can see far beyond what we can, and to truly trust Him, we need to “place things in His hands” and BELIEVE that He will take care of us. On this “Good” Friday, remember that Jesus made the way to be able to stand with you in all you face, and thank Him.

Don’t be pulled in different directions or worried about a thing. Be saturated in prayer throughout each day, offering your faith-filled requests before God with overflowing gratitude. Tell him every detail of your life, [7] then God’s wonderful peace that transcends human understanding, will guard your heart and mind through Jesus Christ. Philippians 4:6-7 TPT

Between the gates

November 14, 2022Christian, Uncategorizedbible, Christian, church, cross, daily, Daily devotional, Daily readings, Devotion, devotional, encouragement, encouraging, faith, guidance, Hope, inspiration, Prayer, Strength, Women, WorshipFace in the Sunlight Leave a comment

What an odd way to start a blog…not IN somewhere or something…but between it! 🙂 This is where I feel I’ve been for quite a while…between the gates.

It’s that place where you’ve emerged from one gate and closed it but haven’t gone through the next one yet. At first, being between the gates may feel like a relief…you’ve just come out of a job, a difficult relationship or an era of your life that’s come to an end. Maybe you feel a sense of completion or maybe you feel lost – having no idea what is coming next. Maybe you feel hurt or tired and need healing or time for restoration. It’s difficult because you can see where you’ve come from and know what that feels like, but you can’t see very much of where you’re going…maybe just a glimpse but certainly nothing you can be sure of.

Dwelling between the gates generally feels like a safe place in the beginning. It’s kind of like the no man’s land where you can rest and very little is expected of you.

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me – watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly” Matt 11:28-30

It’s a place where God can gently strip away habits or ways that He doesn’t want us to carry ahead with us and where new creativity can be born and grown. It’s super important that we rest in God as long as He calls us to and don’t try to go rushing straight through the next gate. Some of God’s greatest work is done within us in this place between the gates. Our relationship with Him deepens in ways it could never do when we’re rushing around in busyness and distracted by new and exciting adventures. Of course there’s learning in that too…but it’s different.

When we are here, we are not hiding or isolating…we are resting, healing, being restored and later being equipped. I implore you never to rush ahead when God is calling you to stop. You’re just not ready yet. After a while, God will begin to equip us, to bring fresh vision and dreams, to grow some of our gifts and prepare us for the next step.

Sometimes for some of us, we decide to camp here between the gates and not move forward when it’s time. It feels safe and we decide we’ve done enough in the past and don’t want to move forward. In fact…sometimes we want to be back in the previous field because we’re afraid to embrace what’s coming next. We can wait too long between the gates.

As I stand here, I can hear loud voices through the next gate and I feel intimidated. They sound self assured and loud. Maybe I will wait here for longer. I know I should have walked through the gate a while ago but I feel like there’s a huge invisible wall that’s grown in it’s way. Where and when did I lose my confidence? Was it in the diagnosis I received? The pain of a broken relationship? The loss of my loved one? Or was it because I have waited here too long? Maybe a mix of all of these.

If I stay here too long my life will become dry and stale. However, God is encouraging me to push through that new gate. To trust Him. To take a risk, though it’s not a risk at all because He is with me all the way.

“I hear the Lord saying “I will stay close to you, instructing and guiding you along the pathway for your life. I will advise you along the way and lead you forth with my eyes as your guide” Psalm 32:8

As I turn to walk through the next gate, my heart is racing but I know God is with me. I see a new meadow and the freedom of a blue sky and feel His motivation nudging me and spurring me forward. In the place of lethargy, I feel fresh ideas rising up and creativity begin to stir.

Do you feel like you’re stuck between the gates?

Are you feeling impatient and wanting to race into the next field? Wait and allow His love and healing to soak into you and give time for Him to equip you first.

Do you feel like you’ve been here too long? Take courage and trust in His leading. He’s with you and He has so much more for you.

Unfailing Words

January 20, 2020Christianbible, Christian, church, cross, crucifixion, daily, Daily devotional, Daily readings, Devotion, encouragement, encouraging, faith, good friday, guidance, Hope, inspiration, Men, New Wine, Prayer, sacrifice, Strength, Women, Word, WorshipFace in the Sunlight Leave a comment

“For no word from God will ever fail” Luke 1:37

I’m sat in a well-known coffee shop enjoying a bowl of hot soup on an average January day. I’ll be completely honest, I’ve found it so hard to get motivated this week and really didn’t feel like writing (not that I don’t love chatting with you – but you know what I mean :D). Being a goal orientated person I generally love a clean sheet to begin getting organised and make fresh plans and I’m sure many of you are the same. So…why is it SO hard to get motivated in January!! We have a whole fresh year ahead of us and for most people January is fairly bland and empty, so it’s the perfect time to crack on and get into things – yet we’d rather sit on the sofa with a hot chocolate and watch films all day! It’s funny, because in a few months when the weather starts picking up and we’re going out much more, I’ll be wishing I had more time to do these things!

As always God gave me my word for the year on New Year’s Eve and this year it is literally The Year of the Word…Awesome! January’s so often a time when we think back to ‘Words’ God has spoken to us over the past year and re-position ourselves once again. Many people make New Year’s resolutions at this time of year which tend to fade pretty quickly, but God’s word over our lives NEVER fails. I was really excited when I read this scripture this morning as know it’s a promise each and every one of us needs to hold onto.

When God speaks a Word into our lives we generally feel so encouraged, sometimes nervous and often excited. It’s interesting sadly though, that as time moves on, it’s like the truth and power of that Word seems to dilute. Of course, this is not because God’s faithfulness changes, it’s because our faith and patience wanes. To put this tiny but powerful scripture in context, this sentence is spoken by the angel Gabriel to Mary – straight from the mouth of an angel!! I reckon if anyone knows God well, other than Jesus and the Spirit, it’s the angels! He spoke this to Mary as he told her about the coming of Jesus. He declared it as a fact and a promise for her to hold onto. I wanted to share this with you today to encourage you to keep this scripture in your heart and mind and speak it out whenever you need it this year.

There are so many promises in the Bible to read and hold onto. Be assured today that He will never leave you or forsake you; He knew you before you were even born; He who began a good work in you will continue it until completion; He loves you with an everlasting love; if you believe in Him He will give you eternal life. He walks beside you, loves you, heals you, directs you, knows you. Whenever you doubt that, remember this very special verse from an angel “For no word from God will EVER fail”.

All those words spoken over your life WILL come to fruition in His time. Hold onto Him and let Him walk you through each day, knowing He has you, He will never forget you and He will never forsake you.

Father, thank you for Your word. Thank you that You speak into my life in so many ways. Thank you for Your promises. I’m so grateful today that You understand how hard it is for me to hold on sometimes but you give me Your amazing word to keep me going. Thank you that Your word will NEVER EVER fail. In Your Name, Amen.

Unimaginable Sacrifice

April 19, 2019Christian, Uncategorizedbible, Christian, church, cross, crucifixion, daily, Devotion, Easter, encouragement, encouraging, faith, good friday, guidance, Hope, inspiration, Men, Prayer, sacrifice, Strength, Women, WorshipFace in the Sunlight Leave a comment

“He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live for righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.” 1 Peter 2:24

As it’s Good Friday today, I thought I’d share some of my thoughts of what Jesus has shown me over this last year. I have shared before about how sometimes I can feel a little immune to many stories that happened and are spoken about in the Bible, because I was brought up on them so have always known them. I don’t think I’ll ever be immune to my feelings about the crucifixion…However, I don’t think I could even slightly access the depth of what Jesus really did until now. I am forever grateful for what He did for me on and through the cross and thank Him for that every day. So last Easter I decided to focus, not just on what He accomplished for me, but what He did for mankind. As it was my Year of Sacrifice and I spent the whole year wanting to get to know Jesus in a far deeper way, Easter was particularly poignant.

Recently I’ve watched a fair few documentaries and ‘real’ dramas about difficult issues. In my naivety I had no idea of the sadness of the red light area in Amsterdam with the prostitutes in the shop-like windows. I have heard and watched testimonies of child abuse, murder, exploitation, sex trafficking, abandonment, manipulation. All heart-breaking and hard to get your head around. I will mention at this point that this is not all I’ve been filling my head with, but there does seem to have been a lot more of it in the media recently.

Isaiah 53:5 NIV says “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.” The NLT verse 4,5 says 4 “Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins! But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.”

It breaks me to think of this happening to Him just for my sin but when I think of Him taking upon Himself all the sin of the world…past, present and future…I cannot contain the shock and grief I feel. One of the things I always respect God for so much is that He can see all the terrible terrible things that go in our world – all the pain, hurt, grief, disappointment and shame. If I were to feel that on behalf of just one other person, especially if they had been through terrible things or caused terrible things, I could not contain the shame and pain. Yet…He sees it all every day and still loves us so much. Jesus had to literally take all of that on Himself – billions of people’s hurt, confusion, pain and shame. I have tears rolling down my face as I’m typing this. He did it though…because of His great love for us…and went into hell on our behalf, then rose again in such glory to bring us the incredible eternal life that we don’t deserve and to walk with us through every moment of our lives.

This Easter, allow Him to stretch your mind a little so you can grasp just a little bit of what the cross really means.