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A Real Pearler…

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All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished
Luke 2:18

In Australian slang a “Pearler” is something that’s really impressive. So, if something goes beyond the norm, is better than could be expected or stands out in any way it’s a “pearler”. If someone tells a big, almost unbelievable story it’s called a “real pearler” but only if it’s true.

Today’s verse tells us about an almost unbelievable story that was told by the Shepherds. Every part of their story was true but it sounded like a real pearler. The story was about an angelic visitation & Jesus the Messiah whom they had seen. It must have sounded unbelievable because everyone who heard it was astonished. But every part was true. It was just as the angels had told them [Luke 2:20].

Every born-again Christian has a real pearler of a story to tell but few are willing or bold enough to share it. Right now, people are looking, wanting our life’s results in their future. So why are we holding back? Why don’t we simply tell them the truth? [John 8:32] Share with them how encountering & receiving Jesus has set you up to win in life. Then get ready for them to be astonished.

Make this week is your week to tell a real pearler; an almost unbelievable but true story about what Jesus has done your life. Don’t miss out anything. Include every mountaintop & every valley. Explain how the impossible became possible. How Jesus saves, heals & delivers us into a real pearler of a future. Then get ready for them to be astonished.

A Wise Journey…

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We saw His star as it rose, and we have come to worship him
Matthew 2:2

In life we see things and ignore them. This can result in something happening that is less than what we’d expected. Ignoring a red traffic light or a no walking sign for example can have devastating results. When we see something, we’ve seen it for a reason. When we respond correctly, we receive a great result.

Today’s verse shows the great wisdom used by the 3 wise men at the birth of Jesus. When they saw His star rising, they set out on a journey. Their destination was worshipping the Messiah. If they’d never taken action with what they’d seen they’d never have reached their destination. The Bible would’ve been silent about them & their journey.

It’s easy to ignore what God is doing in our lives. If we use wisdom, we’ll start worshipping Jesus the instant we see even a glimpse of what He’s doing. We may not even understand exactly why it’s happening or even what it’ll eventually look like. But the moment we decide to worshipping Him with fervent thanks we’ve become wise knowing we’ll see His result in our lives.

God is always doing something in our lives so this week let’s look to see exactly what that is. He never sleeps [Psalm 121:4] but is continually working with us [Philippians 2:13]. So, let’s look to see what He’s doing, then bring our worship & thankfulness to Him before we even see a result. As we continue on our worship journey, we’ll receive the same results as the 3 wise men.

Everything is Beautiful…

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God has made everything beautiful in its time
Ecclesiastes 3:11

As a child many of us probably remember hearing the story of the ugly duckling. How a homely little bird, born in a barnyard, was teased by all the other animals. The little bird didn’t look like what they expected. Much to its delight, as it grows up and matured it becomes a beautiful swan. What once seemed ugly has now become beautiful.

Today’s verse lets us know God’s plan of beauty. His plan & purpose for everything is that it becomes beautiful. But we have to allow time for that to happen. Genesis 1:31 says that: “God looked over all He had made, and He saw that it was very good!” So, everything God made is very good but at first glance we don’t always see it that way. Sometimes things can look awful, ugly and a little bit homely.

The longer we stay in God’s Word & His Presence the more beautiful things become. Given enough time everything can mature. What may have looked awful & ugly has the potential to become beautiful. But if we don’t allow the time for it to grow & mature, we’ll never see the splendour it contains.

This week let’s work on finding the beauty that surrounds us. If we notice something that is not as lovely as we expect, let’s give it a little more time to grow & mature. As we stay in God’s Word, continue worshipping & believing Him everything will become beautiful in its time. What seemed like impossible at first glance will be possible & will be transformed into beauty. 

God’s Hand…

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The LORD’s hand is not too short to deliver you
Isaiah 59:1

Have you ever reached out to grab something only to discover that it’s just out of reach? Even stretching and moving doesn’t seem to close the gap. It may as well be miles away because we’re unable to physically touch it. If only our hand was a little longer, we’d have it and be happy.

Today’s verse lets us know about God’s hand. We’re told that His hand is never short. It is able to touch everything that needs His touch. Isaiah is telling us that when God reaches his hand out, He delivers & saves us. There is no time in our life when God doesn’t want to do this. Even when we feel we are far from Him He is still reaching into our lives to help.

In the book of Acts Stephen tells us that “God’s hand made everything” [Acts 7:50]. So, when God reaches into our life, He can create everything we need. Many people spend their lives running about playing cat & mouse with God but when we are still & acknowledge Him [Psalm 46:10] His hand is able to save, heal & deliver us into our future.This week let’s be still & acknowledge God [Psalm 46:10]. If we’ve been playing games with Him let’s stop and allow Him to reach out & touch our lives afresh. Let’s allow God to touch everything needed in our lives allowing His hand to create our future. His hand makes everything, so why not let Him make you.

Focus & Notice…

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This is the LORD’s doing, and it is wonderful to see
Psalm 118:23

Have you ever had someone say “quick look at that” only to miss what they were pointing out. I’m sure this happens to most of us regularly. Some things appear so quickly that we have little time to focus & notice them. The only way to see them again in the future is to be ready & prepared to look at them on the next occasion.

Today’s verse prepares us for what we should be looking at in life. We’re told to look out for what the Lord is doing, not just what He’s already done. What God is doing is wonderful. We should constantly be prepared & focused to notice. Even the smallest things that God does are wonderful & magnificent. The smallest things He does easily surpass the greatest things that we are ever able to obtain without Him.

We need to understand that God is up to something right now in our lives. Right now, we should be looking & preparing to see exactly what that is. It’s going to be something wonderful, magnificent & valuable. It’s going to be something we desire & something that we really want. But we will fail to see it if we aren’t prepared to look for it.

This week let’s not look at our problems, pain or difficulties. Let’s look at what the Lord is doing instead. He is doing something wonderful in our lives. It isn’t something hidden or disguised. We’ll see it easily; we’ll know it’s from God and we’ll know it’s for us, so don’t look away. Look right at what God is doing in your life this week and then don’t break gaze with Him as you enter a magnificent future.

Always Remember…

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Remember the LORD your God. He is the one who gives you the ability to be successful
Deuteronomy 8:18

Have you ever struggled to remember a word? It’s often a simple word. It’s often a word we know we should know. It’s right on the tip of our tongue but we just can’t remember it. Given a little time the word pops into our mind and we think to ourselves “How could I not have remembered that!”

Today’s verse lets us know the importance of remembering. We’re told that we should remember the “one who gives” = the Lord our God. We should remember Him not just for who He is but for what He desires to accomplish in our lives. God is the “one who gives” all the strength & efficiency needed to be successful and prosper. Without Him life will descend into chaos, difficulty & unfruitfulness.

Whenever success seems to elude us, or daily life seems to crush in, it’s possible that we’ve forgotten something vital. We’ve forgotten the “one who gives”. We need to remember the Lord our God. We must remember the strength He gives. We must remember the purpose, plan & future He has for us. As we remember Him, we receive from Him. He enables our future as He brings forth His promises & delivers pleasure in the days ahead.

This week let’s prepare for our future success. Let’s take our most difficult & troublesome areas of life & remember God in them. Let’s release them from our control to His. Let’s make Him the complete Lord over these things. Then, lets’ get ready to receive from the “one who gives”. Receive His strength & His efficiency. Receive what’s needed to build the future. The Lord our God will give us everything we need for our future so it is successful & happy.

Three Steps…

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He who began a good work in you will continue it on to completion…
Philippians 1:6

There’s nothing like being on a winning team. Each member trains harder, focuses sharper & achieves more simply because of the team’s success. Everything seems to be achieved quicker. Difficulties are conquered easier and there’s joy & happiness in the lives of everyone involved.

Today’s verse lets us know we’re on a winning team. From the time we gave our lives to Jesus He’s been working with us towards victory. This verse explains that Jesus began the work, He’ll continue the work & He’s going to complete the work. But if we never allow Jesus to begin His work then we’ll never see Him complete it.

We’re all a work in progress. Jesus works with each & every believer to deliver them to victory. But we must let Jesus into the difficult areas of our life to allow Him to begin & complete His work. Every situation, difficulty or hardship we face in life will fit into one of these 3 areas: Jesus is beginning His work in it, Jesus is continuingHis Work in it or Jesus is completing His work in it. Once we understand where it fits we can confidently leave it with Him until it’s finished.

This week let’s give the difficult areas of our lives to Jesus. Allow Him to begin His Work in them. Let Him continue unhindered. Once Jesus has completed His work start giving thanks & praise to Him like never before. We’re on a winning team with Jesus. Let’s live life victoriously by allowing Him to begin, continue & complete His work in our lives this week.

Special Delivery…

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The God whom we serve is able to deliver us
Daniel 3:17

Have you ever waited for a special delivery? Once it’s received, we’re overjoyed. But the process of delivery commenced long before we received it. The process started when we 1st saw the item and placed our order. The delivery was simply the culmination of a very long & complicated process. If we hadn’t ordered the item, we would never have received it.

Today’s verse reminds us of a similar truth in God’s Word. If we expect God to deliver us then we must be serving Him by doing life His way. If we stubbornly pursue our own agenda and dysfunctional way of living, we can’t expect to receive anything. If we persist in doing life the way the world & well-meaning people tell us, then there will be little available for us. But when we serve God, He is able to deliver us through every trial we face.

In this verse Shadrach, Meshach & Abednego were about to face a very fiery trial [Daniel 3]. They knew exactly where their trust was placed. They had lived their lives serving God so when they needed a special delivery, they knew God would come through. They lived this way long before everything heated up. Similarly, if we live our lives serving & trusting God whenever we need help, God is able & ready to move.

This week let’s start preparing. Let’s not wait for life & circumstances to heat up. Let’s prepare to receive a future delivery from God instead. Make a start by living a better life Gods way. Spend time in His Word; the Bible. Speak to Him and ask for His help in prayer. Consider Him and His Church in every decision that needs to be made. As we do this, we enable God to deliver us from every fiery trial into a future that is beyond what we could ask or think [Ephesians 3:20].

You Unlimited…

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I am the Lord, the God of all people. Nothing is too difficult for me
Jeremiah 32:27

If there were no speed limits on a highway how fast would we drive? Some would drive fast enough to get to their destination on time whilst others might speed up to arrive early. Some would leave late making up lost time on the way. Others might drive slowly taking in the scenery arriving whenever they get there. Even if there weren’t a set limit each individual would limit themselves.

Today’s verse lets us know that there are no limits in God. Limits are simply anything that restricts & confines. For example, a speed-limited vehicle is restricted to a much lower speed than what it was built for. If we take the limits off it’ll move faster, go further & achieve more. In the same way when our limits are taken off, we can move faster, go further and achieve so much more than before. When our limits are removed, we can maximize our full potential.

God has no limits to what He can do but we often limit Him. Whenever we limit Him, we limit ourselves. We restrict our future and end up with a life not quite as full as we had hoped. When we remove our limits, we release God to lead us to our full potential, achieving everything He purposed & planned for our lives [Jeremiah 29:11]

This week let’s take the limits off of God [Psalm 78:41]. Let’s release Him from the box we’ve restricted Him to. Let’s start to dream again, believe again and regain our faith in Him. Start to actually believe that “Nothing is too difficult for him” and that “Nothing is impossible for Him” [Matthew 19:26, Luke 1:37]. As we form our lives around His Word our limits are removed and our future is empowered to reach its full potential.

Location, Location…

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Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord
Jeremiah 17:7

A golden rule in real estate investment is “location, location, location”. In other words where a property is located is often more valuable than the bricks & mortar that make up the building. The best house in a bad location is seldom as valuable as the worst house in the best location. The better the location, the better the return on the investment.

Today’s verse lets us know the prime location that will produce the best return from our lives. That location is always trusting in God. The previous verses in Jeremiah 17 let us know some of the perils of trusting in man & flesh. Psalm 20:7 also reminds us to put our trust in God and nothing else. As we trust God, investing into this prime location, we’ll become blessed and our future will be changed.

Choosing to trust in ourselves, our own strength & way of doing things is investing in the wrong location. This location can’t produce the promised blessing no matter how hard we try. We must trust in God and His way of doing things to enter into a life that is blessed, abundant & generous.

This week let’s not allow God’s promise of an amazing future to elude us any longer. Let’s take the rule of “location, location, location” and cause it to produce blessings in our lives. Let’s start by selecting 3 areas in life where we have been struggling to make it work in our own strength & our own way. Then trust these 3 areas to God releasing & allowing Him to lead us to our victory. In no time at all we’ll be one who trusts in the Lord and is abundantly Blessed.