“I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, because for this purpose I have been sent." Luke 4:43
Moving house and country has been a part of my life. I was 5 when my parents emigrated from England to New Zealand; 11 when we moved to Fiji for 16 months; 20 and newly married when we moved to Singapore for 2 years; 30 when we moved to Papua New Guinea for 9 years; almost 40 when we moved to Australia; 48 when we moved to Hong Kong for 13 years. We were back in Australia for 6 years and a week ago we made what we believe to be our final move (this side of heaven), back to New Zealand. You could call us the 'happy wanderers'!
In each place I have lived I can look back and see that God was working in my life and I am so thankful that now, in what some would call my 'twilight years', I know that God still has a purpose for my life and it's for me to find and fulfil it, by His grace.
As Christians our part is to discover our God given gifts and then to find where and how God desires to use them. I am a fan of The Voice talent programme and I have found some of the comments of the coaches to be challenging. Last season one said, "You've got to be out of your comfort zone or you are not going to grow." Just recently another said, "You've been given a gift, that is a privilege, now it's your responsibility to develop and refine that gift and use it wisely." In a recent interview well known singer, Michael Buble, spoke about his life as a performer and how he couldn't go out with the crew after a concert when they were on tour, he had to go home and rest his voice and his body and spend time quietly in order to maintain stamina and keep his voice protected. Discipline.
We are disciples and discipline should be a hallmark of our lives if we are to fulfil God's purposes in the places that he positions us. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 9:27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified. Yes, we miss it, life happens and disruptions come to throw us off key at times but let's be diligent to get back on track in our devotional life so that we keep in mind that today has a purpose. Let's look to Jesus who loves us and equips and enables us to fulfil our purpose, by His grace.
Prayer: Father, please help me to be faithful in my devotion to you and attention to your Word that I might fulfil your purposes for me today. Amen
In each place I have lived I can look back and see that God was working in my life and I am so thankful that now, in what some would call my 'twilight years', I know that God still has a purpose for my life and it's for me to find and fulfil it, by His grace.
As Christians our part is to discover our God given gifts and then to find where and how God desires to use them. I am a fan of The Voice talent programme and I have found some of the comments of the coaches to be challenging. Last season one said, "You've got to be out of your comfort zone or you are not going to grow." Just recently another said, "You've been given a gift, that is a privilege, now it's your responsibility to develop and refine that gift and use it wisely." In a recent interview well known singer, Michael Buble, spoke about his life as a performer and how he couldn't go out with the crew after a concert when they were on tour, he had to go home and rest his voice and his body and spend time quietly in order to maintain stamina and keep his voice protected. Discipline.
We are disciples and discipline should be a hallmark of our lives if we are to fulfil God's purposes in the places that he positions us. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 9:27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified. Yes, we miss it, life happens and disruptions come to throw us off key at times but let's be diligent to get back on track in our devotional life so that we keep in mind that today has a purpose. Let's look to Jesus who loves us and equips and enables us to fulfil our purpose, by His grace.
Prayer: Father, please help me to be faithful in my devotion to you and attention to your Word that I might fulfil your purposes for me today. Amen
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