Tag: temptation

~ Fragile Yet Powerful ~

I was looking at a Tree outside our front window and noticed a Butterfly land on one of the leaves.

It stood there opening and closing its Delicate & Fragile Wings whilst warming itself in the sun.

Then the wind started Blowing and the leaves were going up and down in the wind. As the Butterfly stood on the leaf, the wind became Gusty, blowing its Fragile wings and bending them in all directions.
It looked like it was going to be Blown Away quite a few times.

Yet even though the wind was Blowing hard on its wings, the Butterfly stood there 'Firm & Strong'.

Its Tiny little legs were no bigger than a human hair, yet they held it on the leaf 'Solid & Strong'. 

The wind kept Blowing, yet the Butterfly 'Stood Firm'.

After a while the Butterfly took off and started flying around. 
Even though the gusts of wind kept Blowing, the Butterfly was Not being 'Blown Around' by the wind. It was flying 'Into The Wind'.

The Butterfly was Not being 'Tossed About' by the gusts. It had Purpose & Direction, it knew where it was going, and it Didn't let the wind stop it. 

As I watched this Inspiring Butterfly I realised that even though it was Fragile & Delicate, God had 'Created' it to 'Withstand the Wind'.

When God Deigned the Butterfly He put 'Inbuilt Power' in it.

God's Creativity is so Amazing that He can Create something that's 
Fragile Yet Powerful.

If you are feeling Fragile for whatever reason, whether Physically, Mentally or Emotionally, you can be Assured that God has Created You with 'Inbuilt Power'.

When God Designed You, He Designed You to 'Withstand Whatever is Blown at You'.

He Didn't Create You to be 'Blown Around' and 'Tossed Too & Fro'. 

God Created You to Stand Firm, Solid & Strong.

So Live Your Life with Purpose & Direction,
Knowing where You're going as the 
Person God Created You to Be,
and Don't let Anything or Anybody stop You.

God's Creativity is so Wonderful 
that no matter how Fragile you may feel,
You still have 'Immense Power' Within You.

~ Billions to One  ~

When it comes to 'How to Live Your Life', God & Jesus Loves you so much that They gave you the Freedom to 'Choose'

They Didn't Create you as a Robot that's Pre Programmed.

Instead They Created You as a Unique Individual.

They gave You the Ability to 'Think' for Yourself and to make Your Own Decisions.

The devil knows this and he's been Cunningly trying to 'Mislead' You into making the 'wrong' Choices.

The Bible 'Clearly Guides' us that the devil has 'children' that are living in the world that we Live in today. 
Jesus Himself said to the Pharisees:
“You are the children of your father the devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character, for he is a liar and the father of lies”, (John 8:44).

If Jesus was 'physically' on earth now, He would probably be saying the same thing about Many people in the 'world' today.

These are the people who will try to 'Mislead' you and 'Trick' you into making 'wrong' Choices in How to 'Live Your Life'.

The problem is that the devil has 'Trained' these people with his own Cunning Tactics of how to Trick people without them realising

Deception is from the devil.

That means that 'some' people might 'Seem' to be Nice, Friendly and even Helpful people, yet it's all part of their scheming plan to 'Trick' you into Following them and the devils wrong Ways to Live.

There are Billions of people alive today. Some will Genuinely Help you with Love & Support so you can Live a Joyful Life that's the 'Right Way' to Live.

But unfortunately some people will try to Mislead you with Lies & Deception. They will try to Program you to Live a certain 'Way'. 
Some people will try to 'Trap' you into 'Thinking' that you have No Choice in How to Live Your Life, so that you will Do what 'They' say. 
And there are evil people who will 'put you down' and try to make you feel so 'low' that you 'Look Up' to them.

But the 'Good News' is that there is One person who will Never do Any of that. His name is Jesus Christ.

Jesus will Never try to Program You ~ He gave You 'Freedom' to Choose How to Live Your Life.

Jesus will Never try to Trap You ~ He gave His own Life on the Cross to 
'Set You Free'.

And Jesus will Never put You down ~ He Lifts You Up and Gives You 'Power & Authority' to Trample on devils and demons.

When it comes to Choosing 'How to Live Your Life', you can either look to the Billions of people in the world and drive yourself mad trying to work out who is Genuine and who is Fake, and which is the Right Way to Live and which is wrong.

Or you can Choose 'One Way'.
~ 'Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life' ~

He is the 'True Way' to Live Your Life.
You are 'Made In His Image'.

Jesus Loves You, 
and He Blessed You with the 'Freedom to Choose'.

~ Choose Wisely ~

~ Always Shining  ~

The night sky is Full of Beautiful Shining Stars.

Sometimes when you look up into the sky you can see Millions is Stars twinkling in all the Glory.

There are times though when the storms come and it seems like there are are no Stars in the sky, all you See is the dark storm.

But no matter how big the storm is, the Stars are 'Always Shining'.

God Created the Stars with a 'Plan' and He 'Set Them In Place'.

Just because the storms come, it Doesn't change God's Plan, the Stars 'Always Shine'.

Every storm there has ever been has 'Passed By'. 

No storm lasts forever.

And when the storms 'Pass By', you can once again see the 'Stars Shining' in their Amazing Awe & Wonder. 

The same God who Created those Wonderful Stars, also Created Beautiful & Wonderful 'Blessings' for Your Life.

Sometimes you can See Your Blessings clearly like Twinkling Stars that 
Light Up Your Life.

But there are times when the storms of Life come, and it 'seems' like there are no Blessings in Your Life. Sometimes all you See is darkness.

But just like the Stars, 'Your Blessings' are 'Always Shining'.

God Created Your Blessings with a 'Plan' and He 'Set Them In Place'.

No storms of Life can ever change 'God's Plan' for Your Blessings.

And when the storms 'Pass By' (which they Always do), then Your Blessings will be revealed to You in All their Wonderful Glory.

God Loves You and He has a Plan for Your Life 
that's Full of Blessings.

No matter how dark or stormy Your Life might seem,
God has Blessings 'Set In Place' for You,
and they are 'Always Shining'.

~ Resilient as Grass ~

Grass was one of the first living things that God Created (Genesis 1:11).
It's been around since the beginning of Creation.

Grass is a Very Important part of God's 'Overall Plan' for His Creation.
~ It provides a Covering for the earth's top layer and helps prevent the soil from drying out.
~ It provides Food for many animals.
~ Grass is a Home for billions of important insects, and it provides Protection for many ground nesting birds.
~ Grass covers vast areas of the world we live in and it has Many very Important Qualities.

Yet even though it's Extremely Important, people treat Grass like dirt.

Every time the Grass tries to Grow (like God Created it to), people cut in down with lawn mowers, just because they want a Manicured lawn.

People trample all of it without giving a thought to the damage being done to God's Wonderful Creation.

People pollute it with chemicals and other junk, just because they 'Think' it should 'Look' and 'Be' a certain way.

People treat Grass very badly without 'Thinking' about what God Originally Created Grass to 'Be' and its 'Purpose'. 

Yet even though Grass is treated badly, walked all over and cut down, the Grass just 'Keeps On Growing'.

God Created Grass to be 'Very Resilient' and to 'Never Give Up'.

Grass simply Does what God Created it to 'Do', no matter what people 'Do' to it.

You too are one of God's Wonderful Creations.
If people have treated you like dirt, then be as 'Resilient as Grass'.

If people have put you down, trampled all over you, polluted you with junk (either material or mental), and treated you badly, then 'Do' what 
Grass does, just 'Keep On Growing'.

Grow in 'Your' Relationship with God, Grow in Your Confidence of Your own Abilities that God gave You, and Grow into the Person who God Created 'You' to 'Be'.

You are a Very Important part of God's 'Overall Plan' for His Creation.

He Created You with Inbuilt Power, Love and a Sound Mind that is Capable of 'Resisting' the devil and the evil people who the devil works through.

No matter what people have done to you, or are doing to you,
God Created 'You' to Overcome 'All evil'.

You are made in the 'Image of God' 
and God is a 'Winner'.

Be as 'Resilient as Grass' and 'Never Give Up'.

~ God's Love ~

The Power of Gods Love,
Is Sent to You from Above.

It shows His Care,
It's for All to Share.

There's Amazing Strength in His Love,
And Gentleness like a Peaceful Dove.

He Loves You, whoever you are,
He will Guide You like a Shining Star.

Put your Trust in Him,
And Flee from sin.

Let His Love Shine through,
In All that you Do.

God's Love for you,
Is Pure and True. 

~ Give Him a Chance ~

There was a man named Tim who helped to Create the most Wonderful, Amazing & Inspiring establishment that has ever existed.

His Creative Genius Talents were like nothing that has ever been. What he Created was Simply Sensational.

He did All the Planning, Design Work, Organising, he Chose the People that were needed to run it, Worked out How To Maintain it, and then actually Made the establishment.

He literally knew Everything there was to know about it, from the Tiniest Detail to the Biggest, there was nothing that he didn't know about it.

This One Man did it All 'Behind the Scenes'.

The establishment started off Very Well, but after a while problems started to Creep in, and over the years it got worse and worse until it became Unrecognisable from what Tim had Originally Created.

He continued to work in the Background trying to sort out the problems, but the people who were now running it had turned it into a Mess.

So Tim made a Brave & Humble Decision. He Decided to apply for a position as Manager of the establishment to Help it get back to how it should be.

When he arrived at the main door nobody knew who he was, nobody had ever seen him before, and they asked him to leave. He tried to explain that he had come to Help them, but they didn't Believe him and sent him away.

Tim was Determined to Help them to 'See what the establishment could Be', so he arranged a meeting with the Leaders.

At the meeting he explained how he could Transform the establishment into the Glory that it was Created to Be.

The Leaders 'Grumbled' amongst themselves, then said to Tim, 
“What 'Evidence' have you got to 'Prove' what you're saying”.

Tim said “I know this place Inside Out, I know Everything there is to know about it, you simply need to 'Take My Word' and 'Give Me a Chance' “.

The Leaders 'Grumbled' some more, then said, “No, we want 'Evidence' before we'll Believe you”, and they asked him to leave.

With Great 'Humility' Tim walked out the room.

He went back Everyday for Many years and explained to different people that he wanted to Help them and that he knew 'What To Do' to Help  'Solve Their Problems'. But they all wanted 'Evidence' and Rejected him.
All the time the establishment kept getting worse and worse.

Then one day a man overheard what Tim was saying when he was trying to Help the people. The man went to Tim and said “I don't know much about you, but I've heard you want to Help. This place sure does need Helping. 
It used to be an Amazing Place, but the people here seem to be Corrupted. It's as though there's an Enemy fighting against this place.
But I've always had 'Hope' that it will get Better.
I can see in your eyes that you Really Do want what's Best for this Place”.

Then the man said to Tim, “I'll Definitely 'Give You a Chance'. What can I Do to Help you”. Tim started to reveal his Great Plans for the Place.

After that some other people went to Tim and said “We've heard you want to Help make this Place Better. We want to be part of Your Vision”.

Tim was Full of Joy because of the Support & Love from the people.

A women went to him and said “The people who Rejected you might not Believe you, but 'We Do'. We know in our Hearts what you're capable of”.

With Great Sincerity Tim said “Thank You” to Everyone who was Willing to Help. Under the Loving Leadership of Tim, that small group of people started to make Wonderful Improvements to the establishment. 
Other people saw the Joy & Enthusiasm in them and more & more people were Inspired to join Together with Tim to Achieve Great Things.

The establishment Grew into the Wonderful Glory that Tim Originally Created it to Be, and it Shone like a Beautiful Light for All to see.

All this happened because the people 'Chose' to 'Give Tim a Chance'.

~      ~     ~     ~     ~

This story Represents something far Bigger & more Important. That is: 
'The World God Created for Us All to Live In'.

Jesus was in the Beginning when Everything was Created. It was Through Jesus that God Created Everything. He is the 'Ultimate Creator' With God.
That means Jesus knows Everything there is to know about the World we live in. From the Tiniest things to the Biggest, Jesus knows it All in Detail.

In the Garden of Eden the devil 'Deceived' Adam & Eve and has continued to Deceive people with evil and wicked 'Ways of Living'.

The Peaceful & Beautiful World that God Created Through Jesus became Corrupted by the enemy. The result is the 'World' that we now Live In.

It's Not what God originally Intended.

Jesus wanted to Help. He took the Brave & Humble Decision to come to the 'World' to Help Transform it into how God Originally Created it to Be.

Many people Rejected Jesus, and Many people still Reject Him now.
They Demand 'Evidence' and Refuse to 'Give Him a Chance', and they 
'Turn Him Away'.

And all the time the 'World' gets worse and worse.

But, there were some people who were Willing to 'Give Him a Chance'.
The Disciples 'Believed' Jesus and they wanted to be 'Part of His Vision'.
They took the 'Step of Faith', and they were the first to 'Achieve Great Things with Jesus'.

They were Filled with Joy & Enthusiasm and they Inspired Many more people to 'Give Jesus a Chance'. There are now Many Wonderful people who are Committed to Helping make the 'World' become the Wonderful Place that God & Jesus Created it to Be.

The people who make the Best Improvements are the people who have 'Chosen' to 'Give Jesus a Chance' to Show us what He's Capable of.

Under the 'Loving Leadership' of Jesus they are Helping to 'Transform' the 'World' that God & Jesus Created, into the Beautiful & Wonderful Place they Originally Intended it to Be.

I 'Choose' to be 'Part of this Wonderful Vision'.

I 'Choose' to 'Give Jesus a Chance'.

Do ' You' ?

~ Outsmarting the devil ~

The devil has been Tricking people for Thousands of years with Lies & Deception to turn people Away from God.

Since the first ever Humans stepped foot on earth, the devil has been Tricking them. It started with Adam & Eve. They where the Purest people that have ever existed. They knew No evil, until the devil Tricked Eve into eating from the 'Tree of the knowledge of Good and evil' (the Only Tree that God asked them Not to eat from).

Ever since then the devil has been Tricking people into going Against God's Loving Guidance, and to Disobey our own Creator ~ God.

The devil has now had Thousands of years of Experience of 'How' to Trick people. He has practiced on Billions & Billions of people over the years and he knows what works and what doesn't. He has fine tuned his Tactics.

The devil has been Allowed to take 'evilness' to such a level that it now goes Unnoticed by the Majority of people in society. People are now Living in Ways that God 'Never' Intended for us to Live. 
Even people who want to Follow God are being Tricked by the devil through 'Wrong' Ways of Living that have got into society 'Undetected'.

Some people are trying to fight back against evil, but unfortunately they're 'Leaving God Out' and trying to solve the problems on their 'Own Understanding'.  It's simply Not working.

The problem is that 'Every' Human being has only been on earth for a Fraction of the time that the devil has been around. He has far More Experience, and he knows how to Trick people.

There is Only 'One' person who has been around as long as the devil.

His name is Jesus Christ.

No other person in History has as much Experience & Knowledge as Jesus.
He knows 'Every' Trick the devil has ever used. He knows 'Every' Lie & Deception that the devil has ever told.

The devil 'Tried' to Trick Jesus when He was in the wilderness for 40 days, but Jesus didn't Fall for it, He saw Straight through the devils Trickery.

It's Time for us All to 'Outsmart' the devil and Stop his evilness from spreading around the world any longer.

The 'Only' way we can do that is by 'Teaming Up' with the One person who has Never been Tricked by the devil ~ that is 'Jesus Christ'.

If You want to make a Positive Difference in the world and Outsmart the devil, then say this short Prayer with a Sincere Heart, and then Follow it through with Action.

“Lord Jesus, I don't want to be Tricked by the devil Ever again,
and I want to Help other people Not be Tricked either.

I want to Outsmart the devil.

I don't have the Experience or Knowledge of How to do it, but
' You Do'.
Jesus You were there at the Beginning.
You have Seen & Heard Everything.
Only You have the answers.
Lord I Choose to 'Team Up' with You to Outsmart the devil.
Together we Can Do It. 
Amen”. 

~ Wobbly World or Solid Support ~

I was watching some pigeons flying around and one landed on a telegraph wire. It's little feet Clung to the Wire as it tried to get its balance, wobbling forwards and backwards.

As it Wobbled forward it flicked its tale up to counter balance, and as it Wobbled backwards it stuck its head up to compensate for the Wobble.

This went on for quite a Long Time. There was a few brief moments when it looked like it had settled, but then a slight gust of wind set it off again.

Every so often it flapped its wings in a Frantic attempt to steady itself, whilst all the time Clinging to the Wire in the Hope that it would Support it.

As the pigeon Wobbled, the Wire Wobbled with it, and it made it Worse for the pigeon trying to get its balance.

A few feet away from the pigeon was a Solid telegraph pole. The pigeon was Wasting a Huge amount of Energy, Effort & Time trying to get its balance on an Unstable Wire, yet there was a Solid Place to Stand right next to it.

After quite a Long Time of Wobbling on the Wire, the pigeon came to its Senses and 'Let Go' of the Wire. It gave a few small flaps of its wings, 
Rose Above the Wire and landed Safely on the Solid Pole.

It Immediately got its balance and Calmly settled down. It looked Relaxed & at Peace, as though it Instinctively knew it was now in the Right Place.

As I watched all this happen, I reflected on how my Life used to be Wobbly before I started my 'Journey with Jesus'.

I used to Cling to 'Worldly Ways' of Living and I Wasted a Big part of my Life trying to Compensate for the 'Imbalance' of the 'Worlds Way' to Live Life.

I Wasted Huge amounts of Energy, Effort & Time trying to 'Please People' and 'Fit In' with society, yet just like the pigeon I was Clinging to the Wrong Thing.

I 'Thought' that the 'Worlds Way' of Living would give me Security, Safety, Peace & Joy. But as I 'Wobbled' the World 'Wobbled' with me. 
There was No Stability in the 'Worlds Way'.

Yet All the time I was Clinging to a 'Wobbly World', the Solid Love of Jesus  was right Next to me.

Just like the pigeon Needed to 'Let Go' of the 'Wobbly Wire', I Needed to 'Let Go' of the 'Wobbly Ways' of the world.

I came to my Senses and 'Let Go' of the world and now I feel Relaxed and at Peace. I Instinctively know I'm now in the Right Place 
~ With Jesus, where I Should have been all along.

If Your Life feels Wobbly, 
then its time to 'Let Go' of 'Worldly Ways of Living', 
it's Not where You're Supposed to Be.

The Solid Love of Jesus is 'Right Next to You'.

~ Bloom ~

(This Writing is based on a short Inspirational Talk that 
my Lovely Wife gave in 2018. Hope you Enjoy it).

We often buy plants that have been reduced in price by the shops because they don't 'Meet Up to The Shops Standards'.

When we first get them they're usually a bit droopy, in need of a Good Water and maybe a bit of pruning, but with just a little bit of Love and Affection they Bloom Beautifully.

We bought 2 'Cyclamen Plants' that had been reduced to 20p each because they looked like they were dying. 
That was about 7 years ago and they are Still Growing Strong. Their Leaves Inspire us with their Beautiful Patterns, and each year they Bloom with Lovely Flowers.

Someone had reduced the 'Value' of these Beautiful plants when there's nothing actually wrong with them, it's just that they don't meet with 'Peoples Expectations' of what plants should look like.

This is the same in our Lives. 
People put our 'Value' down just because we don't meet up to 
'Their Expectations'. 

Well, people might put our Value down and try to make us feel worthless,
but the Truth is, in God's eyes we are 'Priceless'. 

When we simply Accept Gods Wonderful Love and Care 
then We too Can Bloom.

~ Growing Happily & Peacefully Together ~

I'm often 'Inspired by Nature' in many Wonderful ways, especially in the Beautiful Highlands of Scotland.

One of the Inspirations was whilst walking around a Peaceful Forest. 

I noticed Tall Trees that were 'Well Established' and had probably been there for Hundreds of years.

Next to them were 'Younger Trees', and they were Happily Growing with the 'Well Established Trees'.         

There were Many Different Varieties of Trees including Pines, Beech, Spruces, Larch, Yew Trees & many others, all Growing Happily & Peacefully Together.

Every Tree was Different in it's own Unique way, yet they were all Growing Together to Create a 'Beautiful and Peaceful' environment.

There was no arguments about who's been there longer, no jealousy between Trees wanting to be like other Trees, no fighting over who's got the best position in the forest, there was no stealing each others soil, no childish name calling and no lies & manipulation.

All the Trees were living in 'Harmony' with each other.

Every Individual Tree was simply 'Being' what God Created it to 'Be'. 
And because of that, the Forest became a Beautiful, Peaceful and Inspiring place to be.

It's no wonder that Wildlife choose to live in the Forests.

The Trees were living Happily and Peacefully Together, and that's how God Created 'people' to be as well. 

If we all just 'Be' who God Created us to 'Be', then we can all live in Peace and Harmony with each other. 

God Created us All to 'Be' in the 'Image of God'.

There's no Greater Harmony than that.

When we put our Faith in God (and Only God) we can all be like a Beautiful Forest, Growing Happily & Peacefully Together.         

We can Create a Welcoming & Inspiring 'Forest of Faith', just like the Trees. 

When we all simply Live our Lives how God 'Intended' us to live, 
then people will say:

It's no wonder that people choose to Live In 
'The Forest of Faith'

 Live 'Like a Tree' and Help to Create      
   Gods Forest of Faith.